A suicide bomber has blown himself up inside an Afghan ministry in Kabul, causing a number of casualties.
The attack took place at the information and culture ministry, in the centre of the capital, causing massive damage.
The police say that at least five people are known to have been killed or injured in the attack.
Security around ministry buildings in Kabul is usually very tight and attacks such as this are not common.
The Taleban have claimed responsibility for the attack in statements to news agencies.
Chaotic and tense
A ministry worker told the BBC's Ian Pannell at the scene that two or three men fought their way past security into the building.
One of them was wearing an explosive device which he then detonated.
A spokesman for the Taleban, Zabiullah Mujahid, told agencies that three men carried out the attack.
He said two of them shot at ministry guards and then left the area after the third entered the ministry's building.
Many of the six-storey building's windows were blown out by the force of the blast and some windows in neighboring buildings were also shattered.
The atmosphere outside the ministry is chaotic and very tense, with a heavy police presence, our correspondent says, and there is speculation that one of the bomber's accomplices could still be in the area.
PHOTO CAPTION
Afghan doctors help an injured man after a suicide attack in Kabul October 30, 2008.
BBC