Explosive device thrown into US embassy in Montenegro

­PODGORICA, Montenegro: A suicide attacker blew themself up after throwing an explosive device into the US embassy compound in Podgorica, the Montenegrin government said on Thursday.

Authorities in Podgorica have not released any theories as to the motive for the early morning attack in Montenegro, which recently joined Nato. "In front of the @USEmbassyMNE building in #Podgorica, #Montenegro an unknown person committed suicide with an explosive device. Immediately before, that person threw an explosive device," the government tweeted, saying the device was "most probably" a hand grenade.

It said the attacker threw the device "into the US embassy compound" from an intersection near a sports centre. A US State Department spokesperson confirmed "a small explosion near the US Embassy compound" saying officials were "working closely with police to identify the assailant(s)".

Montenegro’s main daily paper Vijesti identified the attacker as a 43-year-old man born in neighbouring Serbia but who was living in Podgorica.

It also published a picture, apparently from his Facebook page, showing an award he won for his service in the Yugoslav army in 1999, which was signed by the late Serbian strongman Slobodan Milosevic. That was the year in which Nato struck Serbia to end the Kosovo war. In 2006, Montenegro declared independence and has espoused pro-Western policies ever since.

An AFP correspondent who arrived at the site shortly after the blast did not see any damage. Police said the explosion inside the embassy’s courtyard had left a crater, but that there was no other damage to the embassy’s property.

On its Twitter account, the embassy said all its staff were "safe and accounted for" but it cancelled all visa services for the day, although access was available for US citizens "on an emergency basis".