Three police hurt by bomb near Afghan parliament

"It was an explosion near a police post. Three officers are injured and investigations to determine the cause of the explosion are underway," Kabul police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai told AFP.

The interior ministry in a statement said the explosion was triggered by an improvised explosive device, or IED, the Taliban's weapon of choice.

It said the three wounded had been taken to hospital for treatment.

The blast follows a major Taliban attack at a landmark hotel in Kabul on Thursday in which 21 people were killed, fuelling doubts over Afghan forces' ability to protect their country as US-led troops begin to draw down forces.

Kabul is the only city under Afghan security control, but a rise in attacks on government departments, and guest houses and shops used by Westerners in recent years, has chipped away at its reputation for relative safety.

Copyright AFP (Agence France-Presse), 2011