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Suicide Bombing Attack on Shiite Mosque in Kabul Kills at Least 32 ISIS Claims Attack on Shiite Mosque in Kabul That Killed at Least 32
(about 17 hours later)
KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber detonated explosives in a Shiite mosque in Kabul on Friday as worshipers were gathering for evening prayer, killing at least 32 people in the latest in a series of attacks against Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan.KABUL, Afghanistan — A suicide bomber detonated explosives in a Shiite mosque in Kabul on Friday as worshipers were gathering for evening prayer, killing at least 32 people in the latest in a series of attacks against Shiite Muslims in Afghanistan.
The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, saying in a statement that one of its fighters in what it called Khorasan Province, an ancient name for the region that includes Afghanistan, had detonated an explosive vest inside the mosque.
Precise casualty figures were not immediately clear, as bodies and the injured were loaded into police vehicles and ambulances and taken to hospitals. Basir Mujahid, a spokesman for the police in Kabul, said that in addition to the 32 killed, 41 others were wounded.Precise casualty figures were not immediately clear, as bodies and the injured were loaded into police vehicles and ambulances and taken to hospitals. Basir Mujahid, a spokesman for the police in Kabul, said that in addition to the 32 killed, 41 others were wounded.
They were taken to hospitals immediately after the explosion, and Ismail Kawoosi, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said he feared the toll would rise.They were taken to hospitals immediately after the explosion, and Ismail Kawoosi, a spokesman for the Ministry of Health, said he feared the toll would rise.
Witnesses said the number of the dead could be as many as 50, since the mosque, Imam Zaman, located on the west side of the city, had been full of worshipers.Witnesses said the number of the dead could be as many as 50, since the mosque, Imam Zaman, located on the west side of the city, had been full of worshipers.
“I was in front of the mosque when the explosion happened, and I fell on the ground,” said Sayed Nazer, a witness. “When I stood up, some people were rushing inside the mosque and some running outside. I saw three police pickup trucks full of bodies taken away, before even ambulances arrived. I think it could be 50 dead at least.”“I was in front of the mosque when the explosion happened, and I fell on the ground,” said Sayed Nazer, a witness. “When I stood up, some people were rushing inside the mosque and some running outside. I saw three police pickup trucks full of bodies taken away, before even ambulances arrived. I think it could be 50 dead at least.”
After the explosion, emotions ran high outside the mosque. Many people had escaped the mosque barefoot, and some protested the government’s perceived inability to protect the country’s Shiites, chanting, “Death to Ashraf Ghani,” Afghanistan’s president. Another attack on a Sunni mosque in the western province of Ghor on Friday afternoon killed at least 10 people and wounded several others, officials said. Local news reports put the number of dead at 30.
Unlike after other such attacks, the area was not cordoned off by the police, who tried only to prevent people from entering and reaching the carnage inside the mosque.
The number of attacks against the places of worship of the Shiite minority this year — many claimed by the Islamic State — and the government’s seeming inability to protect against the deadly assaults have alarmed many Afghans.
In August, Islamic State suicide bombers stormed a mosque in north of Kabul during Friday prayers, leaving at least 40 worshipers dead. Weeks earlier, an attack on another mosque in the western city of Herat killed scores.
Another attack on a Sunni mosque in the western province of Ghor on Friday afternoon killed at least 10 people and wounded several others, officials said. Local media reports put the number of dead at 30.
That attack, in the Dolaina district, targeted a local commander who had been praying there, according to Abudl Hamid Natiqi, a member of the provincial council in Ghor.That attack, in the Dolaina district, targeted a local commander who had been praying there, according to Abudl Hamid Natiqi, a member of the provincial council in Ghor.
The number of attacks against the places of worship of the Shiite minority this year have alarmed many Afghans.
After the explosion, emotions ran high outside the mosque. Many people had escaped the mosque in Kabul barefoot, and some protested what they saw as the government’s perceived inability to protect the country’s Shiites, chanting, “Death to Ashraf Ghani,” Afghanistan’s president.
While the Islamic State, known as ISIS or ISI, has claimed most of the attacks targeting Shiites in Afghanistan, western and Afghan officials still have doubts about what constitutes the group in Afghanistan. They question whether it coordinates with the Islamic State central in Iraq or Syria, or if it is just another umbrella group that overlaps with some of the more extreme elements of the Pakistani and Afghan Taliban.
In August, Islamic State suicide bombers stormed a mosque in north of Kabul during Friday prayers, leaving at least 40 worshipers dead. Weeks earlier, an attack on another mosque in the western city of Herat killed scores.