Suicide attack on school in Afghanistan kills at least 19 people

A suicide attack on an educational center in the Afghan capital, Kabul, killed at least 19 people and wounded 27 on Friday, local police said. No group has claimed responsibility for the bombing so far.

Many of those living in the area where the blast took place are from a majority Shi’ite Muslim minority known as the “Hazara”, the target of previous attacks by the Islamic State extremist group.

According to a police spokesman, Khalid Zadran, the attack took place at a private school during an exam. Schools in Afghanistan generally close on Fridays, a holy day for Muslims.

“Attacking civilian targets proves the enemy’s inhuman cruelty and lack of moral standards,” Zadran said, without specifying who is believed to be behind the attack.

The official death toll is likely to rise. A Taliban informant claimed that 33 people lost their lives, some of them female students. The age of the victims is unclear, but the school prepares high school seniors for university entry.

Ghulm Sadiq, a local resident, said he was at home when he heard a loud sound and went outside to see smoke rising from the school building. He and the neighbors rushed to help. “My friends and I managed to transport about 15 wounded and 9 dead bodies. Other bodies were lying under chairs and tables inside the classroom,” he said.

US charge d’affaires in Afghanistan, Karen Decker condemned the blast. “Targeting a room full of students taking exams is shameful; all students should be able to be educated in peace and without fear,” she said in a message on Twitter.

High schools for women have been closed in Kabul in recent months after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan in August last year with the withdrawal of US troops. The group had initially said it would leave the schools open, but in the end it banned women from studying. However, residents of the capital and education officials say the students can still attend private tutoring centers.

In recent times, there have been a series of explosions in mosques and civilian areas, which contradicts the Taliban’s pledge to protect the country after decades of war. The actions are often directed against minorities such as the Shias — but also the Taliban — and often take place on Fridays, as was the case with an explosion outside a mosque that killed 18 people in early September.

In mid-August, a suicide bomber detonated explosives inside a religious school in Kabul, in an attack that killed cleric Rahimullah Haqqani and his brother. The cleric was known in particular for his fiery speeches against the Islamic State extremist group, which claimed responsibility for the attack.

In April, the holy month of Ramadan, a series of bombings was recorded, with a toll of dozens of dead.