At least 30 people, mostly Afghan soldiers, have been killed in a suicide attack on a bus in Kabul.
'Whoever did this was against people, against humanity, definitely against Islam' - Afghan President Hamid Karzai
A suicide bomber wearing an Afghan army uniform set off a huge explosion while trying to board a military bus in the capital, in an attack that has been claimed by the Taliban.
The blast, which also injured 30 people, ripped off the roof of the bus and tore out its sides, leaving a charred hull of burnt metal. It was reminiscent of the deadliest insurgent attack in Afghanistan since the US invasion in 2001 - when a bomber boarded a police academy bus at Kabul's busiest transportation hub in June and killed 35 people.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said 30 people were killed - 28 soldiers and two civilians. The Health Ministry said another 30 were wounded.
"It was a terrible tragedy, no doubt an act of extreme cowardice," Karzai said. "Whoever did this was against people, against humanity, definitely against Islam. A man who calls himself Muslim will not blow up innocent people in the middle of Ramadan," the Muslim holy month.
Strengthening a call for negotiations he has made with increasing frequency the last several weeks, President Hamid Karzai said he was willing to meet with Taliban leader Mullah Omar and Gulbuddin Hekmatyar, a former prime minister and factional warlord leader.
"If I find their address, there is no need for them to come to me, I'll personally go there and get in touch with them," Karzai said. "Esteemed Mullah, sir, and esteemed Hekmatyar, sir, why are you destroying the country?"
Karzai said he has contacts with Taliban militants through tribal elders but that there are no direct and open government communication channels with the fighters.
"If a group of Taliban or a number of Taliban come to me and say, 'President, we want a department in this or in that ministry or we want a position as deputy minister ... and we don't want to fight anymore... If there will be a demand and a request like that to me, I will accept it because I want conflicts and fighting to end in Afghanistan," Karzai said.
A Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, claimed the militant group was responsible for the blast.
More than 4,500 people have been killed in insurgency-related violence this year, according to a count based on figures from Western and Afghan officials.