Press TV
April 19, 2016
Iran’s Foreign Ministry spokesman Hossein Jaberi Ansari has condemned a terrorist bomb blast in Afghanistan’s capital of Kabul that left tens of people dead.
In a statement on Tuesday, Jaberi Ansari expressed Iran’s sympathy with the Afghan government and nation and the bereaved families of the victims.
He also underlined the importance of a genuine fight against terrorism which threatens the international community.
Nearly 30 people were killed and over 320 others injured in a powerful explosion claimed by the Taliban militants in central Kabul earlier in the day. The deadliest single attack in the Afghan capital since 2011 targeted a building of national security agency.
A few hours after the first attack, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon condemned the blast. The Afghan Presidential Palace also condemned the Taliban attack “in the strongest possible terms.”
Hours after the deadly explosion, a huge blast rocked a diplomatic area of Kabul. A police source told Press TV that an improvised explosive device went off in the area.
The Taliban have stepped up attacks against foreign troops and Afghan security forces since announcing the start of their spring offensive last week. The Taliban said in a statement that the campaign had begun at 5 a.m. local time (0030 GMT) on April 12.
The militants also dubbed the offensive “Operation Omari” in honor of Taliban founder and long-time leader, Mullah Mohammad Omar, who purportedly died at a hospital in Karachi, the main seaport and financial center of Pakistan, in April 2013.
The latest figures released by the United Nations show that acts of terrorism and violence left 600 people dead in Afghanistan during the first quarter of the current year as the armed forces continue to battle Taliban militants.
According to the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA), a total of 600 Afghan civilians lost their lives between January 1 and March 31, 2016, while 1,343 others were injured. Afghanistan is gripped by insecurity 15 years after the United States and its allies attacked the country as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror.
The war removed the Taliban from power but insecurity is still rampant in the country despite the presence of thousands of foreign troops.
Related