Afghan police shot dead a suicide bomber yesterday as he was apparently preparing to attack an outdoor blood donor facility in a busy area of central Kabul, officials said. As the man approached the centre, in a park in the Shar-e Naw commercial district, police opened fire, setting off the explosives in his suicide vest, Hashmat Stanekzai, spokesman for Kabul police said. Apart from the bomber, no casualties were reported and there was no claim of responsibility.