Kabul , Afghanistan ( CNN ) -- Ten people were killed Monday in a suicide bombing outside a U.N. compound in Kandahar , Afghanistan , officials said . Three employees working for the U.N . Refugee Agency were killed in the attack , as well as two Afghan civilians and an Afghan National Police officer , according to officials . In addition , four assailants were killed , according to a press release from the local Kandahar government . Five others were injured , Afghan officials said . The attack began when a truck full of explosives blew up near the U.N. compound , according to the government release . The massive blast , which shattered the windows of buildings surrounding the compound , was followed by an hours-long gunbattle with police , who prevented the insurgents from breaching the compound . The U.N . Refugee Agency is `` seeking a fuller understanding of the circumstances of today 's attack . Nevertheless the fact remains that people working for us have been wounded and killed and the functioning of our Kandahar office seriously disrupted , '' according to a statement from the group . Gen. Hamid Wardag , a local commander of the Afghan National Army , attributed the attack to the Taliban . `` This is a tragedy for UNHCR and for the families of the dead and wounded , '' U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees Antonio Guterres said in a statement . `` It also underscores the great risks for humanitarian workers in Afghanistan . '' The U.S. Embassy in Kabul also expressed its condolences to the families of the victims . Kandahar province has seen a rash of recent violence . On Thursday , insurgents launched attacks on a Provincial Reconstruction Team base and a military outpost , Afghan and NATO officials said . Insurgents fired small guns and rocket-propelled grenades ( RPGs ) toward the Provincial Reconstruction Team , said Agha Lali , a member of the Kandahar provincial council . Officials killed two of the attackers , according to a regional police chief . And on October 22 , three U.S. service members were killed when an improvised explosive device blew up near their assault force . Journalist Nick Paton Walsh contributed to this report .
NEW : U.N. official calls the attack a `` tragedy '' A truck full of explosives blew up in front a U.N. compound , local officials say . The blast occurred at about 1:30 p.m. on Friday outside the main gate to the compound, which houses offices and other facilities for international organizations like UNICEF and UNHCR. Afghan security forces kill four assailants , officials say .