Six Killed in Explosion Near Afghan Foreign Ministry in Kabul

At least six people were killed in a suspected suicide attack near the Afghan Foreign Ministry in Kabul on Monday, officials said.

This is the second time this year that an attack occurred near the ministry.

No one claimed responsibility for the bombing immediately, but the regional branch of the terrorist organization ISIS has increased attacks since the Taliban’s takeover of Afghanistan in mid-August 2021.

ISIS has targeted Taliban officials and their patrols, as well as members of the country’s Shiite minority.

According to Khalid Zadran, spokesman for the Kabul police chief, the Taliban security forces spotted the suicide bomber before he could reach a checkpoint at Malik Asghar intersection near the ministry.

The attacker then detonated his explosive devices, killing at least six civilians. Among the wounded in the attack were three members of the Taliban security forces.

The Kabul hospital, which is run by the non-governmental emergency organization, said it had received two dead as a result of the blast and 12 wounded, including a child.

“Among the wounded, all males, is a child,” said Stefano Souza, director of the NGO in Afghanistan. Once again we are reminded that even though the war is over, we continue to treat victims of violence.”

In mid-January, an ISIS attack near the ministry killed at least five people and wounded several others. Barricades line the fortified road to the ministry, which is located on one of the roads leading to the presidential palace. Guards stop and search vehicles and people along the way.

The terrorist organization ISIS also claimed other attacks in Kabul, including an explosion near a checkpoint at the city’s military airport that killed and injured many people, as well as an attack on a hotel in Kabul in mid-December.