KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber struck outside a government intelligence office near the presidential palace in the Afghan capital on Monday, killing six civilians, officials said.

Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said three other civilians were wounded in the rush-hour attack in Shashdarak, a Kabul neighborhood with several government offices and a heavy security presence.

Police cordoned off the area, which links eastern parts of Kabul to the city center. Witnesses said the attack occurred outside the main entrance to a security compound.

"Uniformed forces closed off the main roads. Ambulances were seen leaving the scene, apparently taking casualties to hospitals," said Qadir Salem, a bystander.

Mariam Attaie, a commuter who was heading to work when the attack occurred, wrote on her Facebook page: "My day has been started with sorrow and grief, I was just few meters away from today's explosion, my ears stopped working for few minutes."

The bombing comes a week after militants stormed a National Directorate of Security training center in Kabul, which in recent months has been repeatedly targeted by suicide bombers with ties to the Islamic State and the Taliban.

The Islamic State asserted responsibility for the attack through its Amaq News Agency.

The group has been ratcheting up attacks on government buildings and, most recently, Shiite mosques in Kabul, inflicting heavy civilian casualties.