First modification:
At least 12 people died this Wednesday in Afghanistan in four attacks. The terrorist group (self-proclaimed) Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks, which pose a security challenge for the Taliban.
At least twelve people died this Wednesday, May 25, in Afghanistan in four attacks: three against minibuses in Mazar-i-Sharif, to the north. The attacks were claimed by the self-proclaimed Islamic State (IS). The other act of homicidal violence was against a mosque in the capital, Kabul, according to authorities.
In Mazar-i-Sharif, the main city in the north, “the bombs were planted on three minibuses in different parts of the city,” Balkh provincial police spokesman Asif Waziri told AFP. At least 10 people died and another 15 were injured, according to the report of police and health authorities.
The jihadist group (self-proclaimed) Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attacks at night. “Soldiers of the caliphate detonated two bombs on two buses (…) and a third bomb on a third bus,” IS said through its ‘Telegram’ channels.
In Kabul, another attack targeted a mosque in the afternoon, killing at least two people and wounding 10 others; the bomb had been planted inside a mosque fan, the Afghan Interior Ministry said.
A security challenge for the Taliban
The number of attacks in the country has decreased since the Taliban took power in August, but a series of deadly attacks in which dozens of people were killed hit the country in late April, during the holy month of Ramadan. Some of the attacks, claimed by the jihadist structure (self-proclaimed) Islamic State, were aimed, in particular, at the Shiite Hazara minority, considered a heretic by IS.
The Taliban are trying to play down the threat from the self-proclaimed Islamic State-Khorasan (IS-K), the regional branch of IS, and are waging an all-out battle against the group, which they have been fighting for years. Raids have intensified, especially in the eastern province of Nangarhar, detaining hundreds of men accused of being members.
IS has been claiming to have defeated ISIS-K for several months, but analysts believe the extremist group remains the main security challenge for the new Afghan government.
*With AFP; adapted from its original French version
#Afghanistan #selfproclaimed #Islamic #State #claimed #responsibility #attacks