The assault came as thousands of demonstrators gathered to demand that a multi-million-dollar power line pass through their electricity-starved province of Bamiyan, one of the most deprived areas of Afghanistan with a large Hazara population. The twin bombing targeted a peaceful protest by members of the Hazara minority.
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On November 11, thousands of protesters marched through Kabul with coffins containing the decapitated bodies of seven Shiite Hazaras, four men, two women and one child.
Saturday’s attack was the deadliest of the past 15 years on the Hazaras, a largely Shia group.
Afghan officials say at least 10 people were killed and dozens more wounded, Reuters reported.
A suicide bombing in the capital of Afghanistan on Saturday killed 80 people and injured more than 230 others, many of whom were taking part in a political demonstration, authorities said.
ISIS claimed the bombings in a statement carried by its affiliated Amaq news agency, calling it an attack on Shiites. The protesters were marching against government plans for a major power project to bypass Bamiyan, a predominantly Hazara province in the central highlands. Most Hazaras are Shiite Muslims, while most Afghans are Sunni.
The Taliban denied any involvement in the attack.
The attack targeting the protesters was quickly claimed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS), a hardline group with a history of targeting the Hazara people.
IS has had a presence in Afghanistan for the past year, mainly in the eastern province of Nangarhar along the Pakistani border.
The President of Afghanistan went on television to declare that Sunday will be a day of national mourning.
Police moved trucks and containers into the city overnight Friday to block roads and prevent marchers reaching the city center or the presidential palace. People took to social media to call for blood donations. These citizens include members of the defense and security forces. A third assailant was shot dead by security forces before he could detonate his vest.
He said Ghani planned to meet with the organizers later on Saturday.
He had earlier issued a statement saying: “Peaceful protest is the right of every citizen, but opportunist terrorists infiltrated the crowds and carried out the attack”.
Reiterating that global humanitarian and worldwide human rights laws underscore the protection of civilians, Yamamoto stressed that the perpetrators of the attack must be held accountable. “We strongly condemn the actions of Afghanistan’s enemies of peace and remain firmly committed to supporting our Afghan partners and the National Unity Government”. The U.S embassy in Kabul also issued a condemnation.
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The attack, described by the top U.N. official in Afghanistan as a “war crime”, drew a shocked reaction from across the world, with condemnation and offers of support from countries including Russian Federation and the United States.
