Six people killed by multiple explosions at a school in a majority Shiite neighborhood in Kabul

MADRID, 19 (EUROPE PRESS)

At least six people have died this Tuesday due to several explosions registered in a school located in a neighborhood of majority Shiite in the capital of Afghanistan, Kabul, as confirmed by the Afghan authorities.

“According to preliminary information, six of our compatriots have been martyred and eleven have been injured due to various explosions in front of the Abdulrahim Shahid Institute, in Police District 18,” Kabul Police spokesman Khalid Zadran said.

“Our security forces have arrived in the area and an investigation is underway,” Zadran said in a message on his official Twitter account. Shortly before, he had indicated that the explosions had caused casualties among “Shiite brothers”, without giving further details.

According to information collected by the Afghan television channel Tolo TV, the explosions took place when the students were leaving their classes at the institute. Subsequently, another explosion was recorded in an educational center located a few kilometers away.

The school is located in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood, in Police District 18 of Kabul, and has a majority of Hazara inhabitants, the target of several attacks in the past by the Islamic State jihadist group.

This minority has been the target of attacks in the past by the Taliban, now in power after taking Kabul in August 2021. The new authorities have since rejected various accusations of discrimination and abuses against the Hazara.

For his part, the United Nations humanitarian coordinator for Afghanistan, Ramiz Alakbarov, has strongly condemned the “horrific attack” in Kabul, according to a statement published by his office, in which he reiterated that attacks against civilians are prohibited by law. Humanitarian.

“On behalf of the entire humanitarian community in Afghanistan, I express my sincere condolences to all those affected and to the families of those who died,” he said. “Violence in or around schools is never acceptable. For the Afghan people, already affected by 40 years of war, schools must be safe places and places where children can learn and flourish,” he stressed.