By RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi
April 29, 2022
At least 10 people died on April 29 in a bomb blast at a mosque in Kabul, said a spokesman for the Taliban-led government police force.
More than 30 people were injured in the blast in the Afghan capital’s Darul Aman district at around 4 p.m. local time. A Taliban official said earlier that seven were killed and 15 were injured but warned the numbers would probably increase.
“The death toll from the blast has risen to 10 and the number of injured to 30. Detectives and security forces have launched a serious investigation into the incident,” Khalid Zadran, the Taliban’s police spokesman in Kabul, said in a text message to RFE/RL’s Radio Azadi.
Hundreds of worshippers had gathered for prayers at the mosque on the last Friday of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan.
The source of the explosion was not immediately known and no one has claimed responsibility for the blast.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid released a statement condemning the blast and saying the perpetrators would be found and punished.
Eyewitnesses told Radio Azadi that they had seen dozens of dead and injured at the site of the blast and that the number of dead was higher than what security authorities had indicated.
A similar blast one week ago at a Sufi monastery in Kunduz’s Imam Sahib district killed at least 30 people and wounded dozens more.
Afghan Hazaras, predominantly Shi’ite Muslims, and several Sunni Sufi groups have been the target of a series of attacks and bombings in Afghanistan recently. Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K) has claimed responsibility for many bombings against Afghan Shi’a.
Copyright (c) 2022. RFE/RL, Inc. Reprinted with the permission of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, 1201 Connecticut Ave NW, Ste 400, Washington DC 20036.
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