Dozens killed in Kabul as Isil bomber targets Shia Muslims at cultural centre
MORE than 40 people were killed and dozens more wounded in a suicide blast which targeted Shia Muslims in Kabul yesterday, with chaotic scenes at the city’s hospitals as anguished families sought loved ones.
The Sunni Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (Isil) claimed responsibility for the gruesome assault on the proiranian Tabayan cultural centre, the third such attack it has orchestrated in the Afghan capital this month.
More than 100 people had gathered to mark the 38th anniversary of the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan at the centre, which is located in western Kabul, in the same building as affiliated Afghan Voice Agency (AVA), an anti-isil media outlet.
“The latest figures we have from this tragic incident shows 41 people have been killed and a further 84 people injured,” a health ministry spokesman told reporters.
Kabul has become one of the deadliest places in war-torn Afghanistan for civilians in recent months, as the Taliban step up their attacks and Isil seeks to expand its presence in the country.
Yesterday’s attack saw chaotic scenes at the Istiqlal hospital where ambulances and police vans brought victims, who included women and children. Many had suffered severe burns to their faces and bodies, as well as shrapnel wounds, AFP reporters said.
Visibly distressed relatives, searching for their loved ones inside the medical facility, slapped their heads in fury as they cried and cursed the government for seemingly being unable to end the carnage on their streets.
Nasrat Rahimi, deputy interior ministry spokesman, said that the attack – the deadliest since a Shia mosque bombing in October that killed more than 50 worshippers – was followed by two smaller bomb blasts as victims and survivors were leaving the scene.
A journalist with AVA said that more than a hundred people were at the event in the building’s basement, with a number of AVA staff among the victims.
Boris Johnson, Foreign Secretary, said the attack was “despicable”. In a statement he added: “We remain determined in our resolve to help the Afghan people overcome terror and we are committed to supporting the Afghan government in seeking a brighter future for its people.”
The assault came just days after a suicide bomber killed six civilians in a Christmas Day attack near an Afghan intelligence agency compound in the city, which was also claimed by Isil. On Dec 18, militants from the group stormed an intelligence training compound in Kabul, triggering a gunfight with police, two of whom were wounded.
Isil said on its propaganda outlet Amaq that it had targeted the Shia centre with a suicide bomber and other bombs. Security in Kabul has been ramped up since May 31 when a massive truck bomb ripped through the diplomatic quarter, killing some 150 people and wounding around 400 others – mostly civilians. No group has yet claimed that attack.
Religious attacks in Afghanistan have skyrocketed in the past two years with the minority Shia community the main target, the United Nations said last month. Isil has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks on Shia worshippers as it seeks to stir up sectarian violence in the country.