A suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt outside a bank in the Afghan city of Kandahar early on March 21 as Taliban employees waited for their salaries.
The bombing, later claimed by the Islamic State (IS) extremist group, killed 19 people, according to a source who spoke to RFE/RL on condition of anonymity.
The source at Kandahar's Mirwais Hospital said the bodies of 19 people were transported to the hospital from the scene along with 18 people who were injured.
Another source quoted by the AFP news agency said 20 people had been killed. That source also spoke on condition of anonymity, citing fear of reprisal for speaking to the media.
A statement from the Taliban-led government's police headquarters in Kandahar said three had been killed in the incident and 13 were injured.
Inamullah Samangani, the director of information and culture for Kandahar Province, said that the situation at one of the city's hospitals where the wounded were transported was under control, denying that there was an urgent need for blood donations.
"There is no such issue, and the wounded people are not in serious condition, they have superficial injuries," he said in a message to journalists quoted by AFP.
The bombing took place around 8 a.m. local time as people employed by the Taliban gathered outside a local branch of the New Kabul Bank to collect their salaries, reports said.
Mullah Asadullah Jamshid, the spokesman of the Taliban's police headquarters in Kandahar, said most of the victims were civilians who were waiting to receive their pay.
An IS fighter "detonated his explosive belt" near a bank in Kandahar city, said a statement from the militant group's Amaq news agency on Telegram. The statement also made reference to a "gathering of the Taliban militia."
One of the dead, Khalil Ahmad, a father of eight in his 40s, had gone to the bank to get his salary, said his nephew, Mohammad Shafiq Saraaj.
"We beg for security to be properly maintained in the country and especially in crowded places, and that our nation be saved from this kind of tragedy," Saraaj was quoted by AFP as saying.
Taliban Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani told AFP that an investigation had been launched and that "the criminals will be identified...and punished for their actions."
The number of random bombings and suicide attacks in Afghanistan has declined since the Taliban seized power in August 2021, but multiple explosions have been reported since the start of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan on March 11 as the regional chapter of IS and other armed groups remain a threat.
The U.S. Charge d'Affaires for Afghanistan, Karen Decker, condemned the bombing at the bank as a "cowardly act" in statement on X, formerly Twitter, and offered condolences to the victims' families.
"Afghans should be able to observe Ramadan peacefully and without fear," she said.