Kabul, Rabi'II 27, 1434, Mar 9, 2013, SPA - A suicide bomber on a bicycle struck outside the Afghan Defense Ministry on Saturday, killing at least nine Afghan civilians as U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel visited Kabul, officials said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in the Afghan capital, according to a report of the Associated Press. Pentagon spokesman George Little said the secretary was in a briefing at a U.S.-led military coalition facility in another part of the city when the explosion occurred. He said the briefing continued without interruption. Afghan Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammad Zahir Azimi said the bomber on a bicycle struck just before 9 a.m. local time about 30 meters (yards) from the main gate of the ministry. The ministry said at least nine civilians were killed and others were wounded. --SPA 11:39 LOCAL TIME 08:39 GMT www.spa.gov.sa/1085630