Iran Condemns Deadly Terrorist Attack in Kabul
TEHRAN (Tasnim) – Iranian Foreign Ministry Spokesman Bahram Qassemi strongly condemned a suicide bombing in the Afghan capital of Kabul that led to the killing of at least 24 people on Monday as an “inhumane and savage” act by terrorists.
In a statement on Monday, Qassemi offered his condolences to the Afghan people and government and the bereaved families of victims of the deadly terrorist attack.
“Despite these violent moves and inhumane and savage acts by extremist and terrorist groups, Afghanistan’s wounded people and government will continue its path to fight against extremism and violence more vigorously than before,” he said.
The Iranian people and government will side with the Afghan nation on the path, the spokesman added.
At least 24 people were killed and more than 40 wounded after a suicide car bomb targeted Afghanistan's capital today, officials said.
The target of Monday's attack was a bus carrying staff of the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, intelligence officials said.
Najib Danish, an acting Interior Ministry spokesman said that the casualty toll could rise.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement.
The attack came just before 7am local time (02:30 GMT) and took place close to the house of Hazara leader Mohammed Mohaqeq.
The Hazaras are one of Afghanistan's largest ethnic minorities, accounting for up to 20 percent of Afghanistan's 30 million inhabitants.
The Hazara community had called a demonstration for Monday to commemorate a suicide bombing that killed 84 in the same area on July 23 last year.
The demonstration was postponed because of security risks.
The latest suicide bombing adds to the unrelenting violence in Afghanistan, where at least 1,662 civilians were killed in the first half of the year.
It came two weeks after the Daesh (also known as ISIL or ISIS) terror group claimed an attack on a mosque in the capital that killed at least four people.
Kabul has accounted for at least 20 percent of all civilian casualties this year, including over 150 people killed in a massive truck bomb attack at the end of May, according to UN figures.
