IS mosque blast kills 11, injures 32

AN EXPLOSION claimed by the Islamic State at a Shi’ite mosque in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif yesterday killed at least 11 people and wounded 32, a health official said, one of a series of blasts around the country. A separate blast caused at least 11 more casualties in Kunduz, another northern Afghan city, officials said.

Islamic State claimed responsibility for the Mazar-e-Sharif attack.

The explosions happened during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan and two days after blasts tore through a high school in the Shi’ite Hazara area in western Kabul, killing at least six.

The Shi’ite community, a religious minority in Afghanistan, is frequently targeted by Sunni militant groups, including Islamic State.

Hospitals in Kunduz had received 11 killed or wounded people in a separate explosion, according to Kunduz’s provincial health authority.

The Interior Ministry said a roadside blast had targeted a van of military mechanics in Kunduz.