New Delhi: As many as 100 people were killed and several injured, owing to the suicide mosque explosion in Afghanistan’s northeastern Kunduz province on Friday. The attack was targeted towards the Shiite Muslims of Afghanistan.
“Our initial findings show that it is a suicide attack,” reported Matiullah Rohani, director of culture and information in Kunduz.
Dost Mohammad Obaida, the deputy police chief for Kunduz province stated that “majority of people there have been killed.”
Reportedly the Taliban stated that the attack was part of suicide bombing, and the count of the number of casualties may go up.
The attack occurred in Shiite mosque during Friday prayers, the most important of the week for Muslims.
According to a doctor at Kunduz Central Hospital stated, “So far we have received 35 dead bodies and over 50 wounded people in our hospital.”
On the other hand, a worker at the Doctor Without Borders hospital received at least 15 dead bodies.
“This afternoon, an explosion took place in a mosque of our Shiite compatriots in the Khan Abad district of Bandar, the capital of Kunduz province, as a result of which a number of our compatriots were martyred and wounded,” said Zabihullah Muhajid, Taliban chief spokesperson.
The reason for the attack could not be cleared immediately. Besides, no group so far has claimed responsibility for it.
Several video footage going around on social media, which could not be verified, showcase bodies surrounded by debris inside the mosque.
A local businessman named Zalmai Alokzai rushed to the Kunduz Provincial Hospital to check with the doctors if they need blood donors. He described the horrific scene stating, “I saw more than 40 dead bodies. Ambulances were going back to the incident scene to carry the dead.”
Shiite Muslims are often targeted by Sunni extremists who have previously been the victims of some of Afghanistan’s most violent assaults, including, rallies bombed, hospitals targeted and commuters ambushed.
