Explosion at Chinese restaurant in Kabul kills at least seven, wounds about a dozen

An explosion has struck a Chinese-run restaurant in the Shahr-e-Naw district of central Kabul, killing at least seven people and wounding roughly a dozen more, Afghan police and medical responders said. Authorities described casualty figures as provisional as investigations and medical assessments continue.

Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran said one Chinese national and six Afghans were among the dead. The Italian medical charity EMERGENCY, which operates a surgical center near the blast site, reported receiving 20 people from the incident, including seven who were already dead on arrival. EMERGENCY’s country director said its teams were treating a number of wounded patients, including four women and a child, some of whom were being assessed for surgery after suffering lacerations and bruises.

The blast occurred near the kitchen of the establishment identified by local sources as the Chinese Noodle restaurant on a street known for flower sellers. Police said the restaurant was jointly owned by an Afghan man and a Chinese national and his wife and that it had been popular with Chinese Muslims and largely served a Muslim Chinese clientele.

Scenes from the neighborhood showed people running as smoke and dust billowed from the site. Local footage filmed through a car windshield captured panicked crowds, while journalists and first responders at the scene described police cars and ambulances arriving quickly. Firefighters and security forces secured the area as investigators moved in to examine the scene and collect evidence.

Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported that two Chinese nationals were seriously injured and said a security guard had been killed. Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry acknowledged deaths and injuries but provided no immediate breakdown. Pakistan’s President Asif Ali Zardari condemned what his office described as "the bomb blast at a Chinese restaurant in Kabul" and attributed the explosion to a bomb, a characterization not yet confirmed by Afghan authorities.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack and officials have not publicly determined whether the explosion resulted from an improvised explosive device, a gas leak, or an accidental detonation. Forensic teams and police investigators are conducting on-site examinations, and final casualty figures await hospital counts and formal statements from health facilities.

The incident raises diplomatic and security concerns beyond the immediate human toll. Attacks affecting foreign nationals and businesses can strain bilateral relations and complicate the security arrangements that protect international workers and visitors. China has expanded commercial and cultural ties in Afghanistan in recent years, and any confirmed targeting of Chinese citizens would likely prompt a coordinated diplomatic response.

Legal authorities face the task of establishing causation and responsibility under Afghan criminal law, and the broader international community will be watching how investigators handle forensic evidence and whether the attack reflects wider patterns of violence in urban centers. For now, Kabul’s emergency services remain focused on caring for the wounded, documenting fatalities, and securing the site as investigators work to determine what happened and whether others may be at risk.