Team News Riveting
A powerful explosion at the entrance of a mosque rocked the Afghanistan capital Kabul Sunday killing over a dozen people and injuring several others.
A Taliban Interior Ministry spokesman confirmed the incident and said “several civilians” were killed in a bomb blast at the entrance of the large Eid Gah Mosque in Kabul. However, a local media claimed that 13 people were dead and 32 others were injured in the deadliest blast after Taliban takeover in Kabul on August 15.
The toll is likely to increase as condition of many injured was reported to be critical.
The preliminary investigation suggested that the explosion was caused by a roadside bomb. Three suspects have been arrested in connection with the incident.
A prayer ceremony for Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid’s mother, who died last week, was being held at the mosque on Sunday afternoon. A large number of people and friends were invited to attend.
No one has immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. Since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August, the militant Islamic State (IS) group has intensified attacks. The rise has raised the possibility of a wider conflict between the two groups.
IS maintains a strong presence in the eastern province of Nangarhar and considers the Taliban an enemy. It has claimed several attacks against them, including several killings in the provincial capital of Jalalabad.
Attacks in the capital city has come as a shock for the Taliban as IS has shown signs it is expanding its footprint beyond the east and closer toward the capital. On Friday, Taliban fighters stormed an IS hideout just north of Kabul in Parwan province. The raid came after an IS roadside bomb wounded four Taliban fighters in the area.
