Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
May 8, 2021
A blast near a school in the Afghan capital, Kabul, has killed at least 25 people and wounded more than 50 others, authorities said.
Interior Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian said that the blast occurred at 4.27 p.m. local time on May 8, outside Syed Al-Shahda school, in the Shi’ite-majority neighborhood of Dasht-e-Barchi, in west Kabul.
Most of the victims were young students, Arian said, adding that casualty figures were likely to rise. Some sources put the death toll at about 40.
A spokeswoman for the Education Ministry told Reuters that it is a joint high school for girls and boys, who study in three shifts, the second of which is for female students.
The wounded are mostly female students, she said.
Images shared on social media purportedly showed the aftermath of the explosion, with smoke rising above the neighborhood.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack. Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid denied the militant group’s involvement, and condemned the attack.
Shi’ite Muslim neighborhoods in Kabul have frequently been targeted by the Islamic State (IS) terrorist group.
A local IS affiliate was blamed for a vicious attack on a maternity hospital in the same area that killed pregnant women and newborn babies last year.
The European Union’s mission in Afghanistan condemned the latest attack as “a despicable act of terrorism.”
“Targeting primarily students in a girls’ school, makes this an attack on the future of Afghanistan,” it said on Twitter.
Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, AFP, dpa