23 people, including girl students, were killed and 27 injured after a suicide attack at a learning centre in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Friday. The incident took place as the students were preparing for an examination.
“Students were preparing for an exam when a suicide bomber struck at this educational centre. Unfortunately, 19 people have been martyred and 27 others wounded,” a police spokesman said.
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There were videos circulating on social media right after the incident which showed the bodies of the victims amidst the rubble and the people present at the spot trying to help the wounded.
“Security teams have reached the site, the nature of the attack and the details of the casualties will be released later,” the interior ministry spokesman Abdul Nafy Takor tweeted after the blast.
“Attacking civilian targets proves the enemy’s inhuman cruelty and lack of moral standards,” said officials adding that the casualties have increased to 23.
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The blast took place in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood of Kabul – an area notorious for violence even before the Taliban took back control in Afghanistan. In 2021, Reuters reported that 85 people — mainly girl students — were killed and about 300 were wounded when three bombs exploded near their school.
The neighbourhood is also the residence of the minority Hazara community.
While the Islamic State took responsibility for the blast in 2021, no group has come forward in the aftermath of Friday’s blast. The attack on women’s education has intensified after the Taliban’s return with official restrictions on dress codes as well as the right to higher education in various institutions.
