47 killed, 70 injured in suicide bombing at Afghanistan mosque
- The blasts went off when the site was packed with worshippers attending Friday prayers, and came just a week after another deadly attack
- The incidents raise fears that Isis – an enemy of both the Taliban and the West – is expanding its foothold in the country
Suicide bombers attacked a Shia mosque packed with worshippers attending Friday prayers in southern Afghanistan, killing at least 47 people and wounding 70, a Taliban official said.
The Islamic State-Khorasan (Isis-K) group claimed responsibility for the carnage at the Fatimiya mosque in Kandahar province.
In a statement released on its Telegram channels, it said that two suicide bombers carried out separate attacks on different parts of the mosque while worshippers prayed inside.
The attack came a week after a bombing, which was also claimed by Isis-K, killed 46 people at a Shia mosque in northern Afghanistan.
The sectarian bloodletting has raised fears that Isis – an enemy of both the Taliban and the West – is expanding its foothold in Afghanistan.
Hafiz Sayeed, the Taliban’s chief for Kandahar’s department of culture and information, said 47 people had been killed and at least 70 wounded in the attack.
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Suicide bombing kills at least 47 at Shia mosque in Afghanistan, second attack in 2 weeks
Murtaza, who like many Afghans goes by one name, said he was inside the mosque during the attack and reported four explosions: two outside and two inside. He said Friday prayers at the mosque typically draw hundreds of people.
Another witness, also named Murtaza, was in charge of security at the mosque and said he saw two bombers. He said one detonated explosives outside the gate, and the other was already among the worshippers inside the mosque.
He said the mosque’s security personnel shot another suspected attacker outside.
Video footage showed bodies scattered across bloodstained carpets, with survivors walking around in a daze or crying out in anguish.
Kabul blasts: what is Isis-K and why is it an enemy of the Taliban?
The Islamic State group, which like Afghanistan’s ruling Taliban is made up of Sunni Muslims, views Shiite Muslims as apostates deserving of death.
Isis has claimed a number of deadly bombings across the country since the Taliban seized power in August amid the withdrawal of US forces. The group has also targeted Taliban fighters in smaller attacks.
If the attack was carried out by Isis, it would be the first major assault by the extremist group in southern Afghanistan since the US departure enabled the Taliban to consolidate control of the country. Recent attacks in the north, the east and the Afghan capital have cast doubt on the Taliban’s ability to counter the threat posed by Isis.
The Taliban have pledged to restore peace and security after decades of war and have also given the US assurances that they will not allow the country to be used as a base for launching extremist attacks on other countries.
The Taliban have pledged, too, to protect Afghanistan’s Shia minority, which was persecuted during the last period of Taliban rule, in the 1990s.
Both the Taliban and Isis adhere to a rigid interpretation of Islamic law, but Isis is far more radical. It has better-known branches in Iraq and Syria.
Additional reporting by Agence France-Presse
