IS Says It Carried Out Afghan Suicide Bombing That Killed 63
63 dead, over 180 injured in a suicide bombing attack in Kabul wedding hall.
(Bloomberg) -- An Islamic State affiliate said it was responsible for a suicide bombing attack at a wedding hall in Afghanistan’s capital on Saturday that killed 63.
More than 180 others were injured in the attack, which took place at 10:40 p.m. in the western part of Kabul, Nasrat Rahimi, a spokesman at the Interior Ministry, said by phone on Sunday. There were about 1,200 people at the event.
Islamic State’s affiliate in Afghanistan claimed responsibility for the blast on Sunday, according to the Associated Press. The Taliban earlier denied responsibility and issued a statement condemning the attack.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the “inhumane attack” in a series of Twitter posts and called for a special security meeting to review and prevent such security lapses.
“Taliban cannot absolve themselves of blame, for they provide platform for terrorists,” he said.
The suicide bombing comes as President Donald Trump’s administration prepares to unveil an Afghanistan peace agreement with the Taliban that would help bring an end to America’s longest war. The possible agreement outlines a timeline for the U.S. and its allies to withdraw from the country in exchange for a pledge from the Taliban to cut ties with terrorists, hold direct talks with the Afghan government and declare a permanent ceasefire.
Trump has come under pressure from members of his own party to maintain some troops in the country to make sure Islamic State, al-Qaeda and other terror groups don’t spread there.
A former Taliban member, Sayed Mohammad Akbar Agha, said the Taliban and the U.S. will probably sign the agreement within days in Doha, where the group has a political office.
Amid increasing attacks, the country, which celebrates its 100th independence day Monday, will hold its fourth democratic presidential elections on Sept. 28. The Taliban militants have called on people to boycott the elections or face death penalties.
To contact the reporter on this story: Eltaf Najafizada in Kabul at enajafizada1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Shamim Adam at sadam2@bloomberg.net, James Amott, Sara Marley
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