Kabul blast kills seven at cleric meet

AT LEAST seven people were killed in a suicide bombing on Monday near a gathering of top clerics in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul, roughly one hour after the group proclaimed such attacks a sin, police said.

The blast in the western part of the city, near universities and a police academy, is the latest demonstration of the militants’ chilling ability to carry out attacks in the heart of Kabul, which is now the deadliest place in the country for civilians.

The bomber detonated at about 11:30am (0700 GMT) at the gates of Kabul’s Polytechnic University, police and officials said. The Loya Jirga tent where thousands of clerics from across Afghanistan were meeting is on the campus.

The tent is a huge venue often used for top religious or government gatherings. “Loya Jirga” means “grand assembly” in Pashto.

Most of the casualties were civilians.

“According to our initial information, seven people have been killed including a policeman.

Nine others have been injured, including two policemen,” police spokesman Hashmat Stanikzai told media. He said the blast was outside the tent.

No group has claimed the attack, but the Taliban issued a statement on Twitter saying its fighters had “nothing to do” with the bombing.

Both the Taliban and Islamic State have stepped up their headline-grabbing assaults on the heavily fortified capital in recent months.