'Today morning an explosion took place outside Kabul military airport, due to which a number of our citizens were martyred and injured,' said a spokesman for the Taliban-run interior ministry.

Among the killed was high-profile pro-Taliban cleric Mujib Rahman Ansari. No outfit yet claimed responsibility for the latest attack.

"For many women across the world, walking outside the front door of your home is an ordinary part of life...For many Afghan women, it is extraordinary. It is an act of defiance," one of the campaigners in Kabul said.