At least 19 students were killed while sitting practice exams in a tutoring centre targeted by a suicide bomber in Kabul.
The attack, which left dozens more wounded, appeared to target female students from Afghanistan’s Hazara minority community.
Footage from the scene showed residents of Kabul’s Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood, which is predominantly inhabited by the Hazara, pulling bodies out of bloodied wreckage, while survivors were carried to nearby hospitals. The death toll was expected to rise.
No one has claimed responsibility for the attack. But, the Hazara, who are Shi’a Muslims, have been repeatedly targeted by Islamic State – Khorasan Province (ISK), the terror group’s Afghan affiliate, over the last year.
“My 17-year-old sister Umem Ashghari is among the victims. She was a brilliant student, a loving soul and so young - she dreamed of getting higher education,” said Mukhar Mudabir, the director of the tutoring centre.
“We are broken. I don’t have words and don’t know why we are suffering this unending brutality, what is our fault?”
Students ‘covered in blood’
Eye witnesses told The Telegraph the attack occurred early on Friday morning. While the Taliban banned Afghan girls from attending secondary schools, some girls have still been attending private tutoring centres, often in secret.
“I was near the gate of the tutoring centre when a huge blast occurred and I couldn’t hear anything apart from gun fire,” said Fatima Ali, a 17-year-old girl, who was running late for class after missing her bus.
“I saw young students running towards me covered in blood, some of them were crying and some of them had lost their senses. I last saw many of my classmates several days ago at a wedding and now I will see them in coffins.”
ISK, who are Sunni Muslims, consider the Hazara their sworn enemies due to their religious beliefs. At least 700 Hazara have been killed by ISK since August 2021 in a series of coordinated attacks.
In April, ISK carried out another suicide bombing at a high school in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood, killing and injuring 20 students and teachers.
The Taliban are accused of turning a blind eye to atrocities being carried out against the Hazara because they, too, have historically persecuted Shi’a Muslims in Afghanistan.
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