21 killed in blast at mosque in latest attack in Afghanistan with civilian victims

KABUL • A blast that tore through a Kabul mosque during evening prayers on Wednesday killed 21 people, Kabul police said yesterday, as the United Nations expressed concern over a growing number of civilian casualties from explosions.

Police spokesman Khalid Zadran said that another 33 people had been injured in the blast, which witnesses told Reuters shattered the windows of buildings near the mosque in a northern Kabul neighbourhood.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the incident and the authorities did not publicly assign blame.

The Taliban said it was restoring security to the war-torn country, which has seen an overall drop in violence since the group took over and defeated a United States-backed government a year ago.

However, several large attacks, some claimed by the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) terror group, have taken place in urban centres in recent months.

The United Nations' mission to Afghanistan (Unama), in a series of tweets, condemned the blast and expressed concern over a "disturbing" series of explosions which have killed and wounded more than 250 people in recent weeks, the highest monthly number of civilian casualties in the past year.

"With security deteriorating, the UN calls on the de facto Taliban authorities to take concrete steps to prevent all forms of terrorism in Afghanistan," Unama said.

Emergency Hospital, a facility run by an Italian non-governmental organisation that specialises in treating victims of war, said in a statement it had admitted 27 people, including five children, who were wounded in the mosque blast. Two people had arrived dead and one patient died in the emergency room, its Afghanistan country director Stefano Sozza said.

In August so far, the hospital has treated 80 patients from six different mass casualty events, which include blasts and mass shootings.

"The country is suffering the consequences of a very long conflict that has undermined its future," Mr Sozza said.

Taliban officials insist they have full control of security in the country, but frequently deny or downplay incidents reported on the country's vibrant social media.

They have also recently taken to preventing local and foreign media from covering the aftermath of attacks - sometimes violently - and yesterday, armed Taliban fighters prevented journalists from reaching the mosque site.

Wednesday's blast comes nearly a week after a suicide bomber killed top Taliban cleric Rahimullah Haqqani, along with his brother, at his madrasah in Kabul.

Mr Haqqani was known for angry speeches against ISIS, which later claimed the attack. The group has primarily targeted minority communities such as Shi'ites and Sikhs.

The Taliban says it has defeated ISIS, but experts claim the group remains a key security challenge for the hardline Islamists.

While ISIS is a Sunni Islamist group like the Taliban, the two are bitter rivals and greatly diverge on ideological grounds.

The blast came as senior Taliban leaders yesterday led a major gathering of more than 2,000 religious clerics and elders in the southern city of Kandahar.

A Taliban spokesman said "important decisions" would be taken at the conference but provided no other details.

The Taliban on Monday marked the first anniversary of its return to power following a turbulent year that saw women's rights crushed and a humanitarian crisis worsen.

REUTERS, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE