(Kabul) An explosion occurred in a Shiite mosque in northern Afghanistan during Friday prayers, two witnesses told AFP, one speaking of a “large number” of dead and injured.
The explosion, the nature of which was not immediately known, took place while worshipers were gathered in the Imam Zaman mosque in Pol-e-Khomri, capital of Baghlan province, according to these sources.
Several attacks on mosques, particularly during Friday prayers, have taken place in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in August 2021.
“I strongly condemn, but at the moment I do not have all the information,” deputy government spokesperson Bilal Karimi told AFP.
“There was a terrible noise,” said Abdul Hamid, one of the witnesses. “After the explosion, a large number of killed and injured people were taken to hospital. The situation is not good at all. »
Habibullah, another resident of Pol-e-Khomri, said the detonation occurred in a “Shiite mosque” when “people were praying”.
The Taliban’s return to power ended two decades of war in Afghanistan and led to a significant reduction in violence.
But even if the authorities claim to have security in the country under control, dozens of attacks targeting civilians have been carried out in the last two years in the country. Most have been claimed by IS-K, the local chapter of the Islamic State (IS) group.
Hundreds of people were killed or injured in these attacks, mainly targeting Shiite, Sufi and Sikh religious minorities, foreigners or foreign interests, and the Taliban themselves.
Analysts consider that the jihadists of IS, a Sunni group like the Taliban, but with which the latter maintain deep enmity and ideological differences, remain the main threat weighing on the Kabul regime.