More than 20 civilians have been injured in this “suicide bombing” claimed by the Islamic State, the government says
A strong explosion at a mosque in Afghanistan has killed at least 18 people, including an imam with links to the Taliban. The event took place this Friday at noon in Herat province, where the Deputy Prime Minister, Mullah Baradar, took part in an economic meeting. Taliban government spokesman Zabihulá Mujahid confirmed that the explosion, which injured more than 20 people, was caused by a “suicide bombing”.
According to the Afghan daily ‘Hasht-e-Subh Daily’, which also collects eyewitnesses, the explosion happened when Imam Maulvi Mujib al-Rahman Ansari and his bodyguards entered the Gazergah Mosque to pray for his faithful. sources increasing the dead to 46 and the injured to 86; figure not confirmed by the Taliban executive, which does claim that the dead include the 38-year-old imam and five of his bodyguards.
Taliban fighters have blocked access to the event site. The Afghan newspaper also reports that a large number of people, including the families of the victims, have gathered outside the regional hospital in Herat and are being beaten away by the Taliban. Nor do they give access to local journalists.
Mujahid expressed his condolences, stating that the religious scholar was killed in a “cowardly attack by the enemies of religion”, as reported by Tolo News. Ansari was a staunch supporter of the Taliban and once stated that any attack, idea or action against “the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan” must end in “beheading”. He also stated that a man who has a wife who does not completely cover himself in public is a “coward”.
Source: La Verdad
I am an experienced and passionate journalist with a strong track record in news website reporting. I specialize in technology coverage, breaking stories on the latest developments and trends from around the world. Working for Today Times Live has given me the opportunity to write thought-provoking pieces that have caught the attention of many readers.
