Bomb explosion rocks Afghan city

At least five people have been killed by a bomb blast in the western Afghan city of Herat, local officials say.

Several others were injured by the blast, which took place near a police station, according to the BBC's Andrew North at the scene of the attack.

Worsening violence blamed on resurgent Taleban rebels has been a key factor behind the postponement of presidential and parliamentary elections.

Afghan clerics have appealed to people to disarm and end decades of gun rule.

Their statement was broadcast by Afghan radio, which said the religious scholars decided to issue the call after a meeting in Kabul.

Disarmament drive

Efforts to register voters and prepare for elections have been hampered by suspected Taleban attacks and attempts by local militiamen to influence the outcome of the vote.

Despite efforts to disarm them, Afghan militias remain powerful

Afghanistan's presidential and parliamentary polls, due to have been held in June this year, have repeatedly been postponed.

The presidential election has now been rescheduled for 9 October, while parliamentary polls are to be held in April or May next year.

The bomb attack in Herat came as local government officials and representatives of the US-led coalition were attending a disarmament ceremony elsewhere in the city.

Civilian victims

The explosion appears to have been caused by a bomb placed on a bicycle, according to local Afghans interviewed by our correspondent in Herat.

Local police are at the scene, along with a small group of US soldiers and a few armed Americans in civilian clothing.

Details of the casualties are unclear, but it appears that at least one of the five reported dead was a child.

A hospital official has said all the victims were civilians.

Herat, near the border with Iran, is regarded as one of Afghanistan's most prosperous and stable cities and has been governed by local warlord Ismail Khan since the hardline Taleban regime crumbled under a US-led assault in 2001.