Kabul mosque blast: Dying toll rises to 21 | World News

A blast which ripped via a mosque filled with worshippers within the Afghan capital killed not less than 21 folks and wounded greater than two dozen others, police mentioned Thursday.

The variety of bombings throughout Afghanistan has declined for the reason that Taliban returned to energy in August final yr, however a number of assaults -- many focusing on minority communities -- have rocked the nation in current months, together with some claimed by the jihadist Islamic State group.

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No group has claimed duty for Wednesday night's blast at Kabul's Sediqia Mosque, which has an adjoining madrassa.

"He was my cousin; might God forgive him," mentioned a neighbourhood resident who gave his title as Masiullah, describing how he learnt of a relative's dying within the blast.

"One yr had handed from his marriage, he was 27 years previous and his title was Fardin... he was a great particular person."

Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran mentioned 21 folks have been killed and 33 wounded.

The Italian non-governmental organisation Emergency, which operates a hospital in Kabul, mentioned Wednesday night it had obtained 27 victims, together with three fatalities.

A lot of the sufferers have been struggling "shell and burn accidents", it mentioned by way of electronic mail.

In a later tweet, the hospital mentioned 5 kids have been amongst these it handled, together with a seven-year-old.

Native hospitals contacted by AFP mentioned they weren't permitted to offer particulars of casualties that they had handled.

Downplay incidents

Taliban officers insist they've full management of safety within the nation, however continuously deny or downplay incidents reported on the nation's vibrant social media.

They've additionally taken not too long ago to stopping native and international media from protecting the aftermath of assaults -- generally violently -- and on Thursday armed Taliban fighters prevented journalists from reaching the mosque web site.

Wednesday's blast comes almost every week after a suicide bomber killed high Taliban cleric Rahimullah Haqqani, alongside along with his brother, at his madrassa in Kabul.

Haqqani was recognized for indignant speeches in opposition to IS, which later claimed the assault.

The group has primarily focused minority communities comparable to Shiites, Sufis and Sikhs.

The Taliban say they've defeated IS, however specialists declare the group stays a key safety problem for the hardline Islamists.

Whereas IS is a Sunni Islamist group just like the Taliban, the 2 are bitter rivals and tremendously diverge on ideological grounds.

The blast got here as senior Taliban leaders on Thursday led a significant gathering of greater than 2,000 non secular clerics and elders within the southern metropolis of Kandahar, the motion's de facto energy base.

In an announcement despatched to the media, a Taliban spokesman mentioned "necessary selections" could be taken on the convention however supplied no different particulars.

The Taliban on Monday marked the primary anniversary of their return to energy following a turbulent yr that noticed ladies's rights crushed and a humanitarian disaster worsen.

Initially, they promised a softer model of the cruel Islamist rule that characterised their first stint in energy from 1996 to 2001, however many restrictions have step by step been imposed.

The nation is in financial disaster, with its abroad belongings frozen by Washington and assist curtailed to be able to maintain funds out of the Taliban's arms.