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Suicide Bombers Strike Near Shi'ite Mosque In Kabul During Friday Prayers


An boy walks near the site of a suicide bomb attack targeting a Shi'ite mosque in Kabul on September 29.
An boy walks near the site of a suicide bomb attack targeting a Shi'ite mosque in Kabul on September 29.

Afghan authorities say suicide attackers have detonated a bomb near a large Shi'ite mosque in Kabul, killing at least one other person and wounding up to 20 more as worshippers prepare to commemorate Ashura, the holiest celebration in the Shi'ite religious calendar.

The attack on September 29 targeted Kabul's northern Qala-e Fatehullah neighborhood near the Hassainya Mosque as worshippers were observing Friday Prayers.

Some reports from the scene of the attack said as many as six people were killed.

Security officials said at least two attackers were killed as they carried out an operation that appeared to be aimed at hitting the mosque just a month after 20 people were killed during prayers at another Shi'ite mosque in Kabul.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the violence, saying the attackers cannot shake the unity of the Afghan people with their "inhumane and irreligious" attacks.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

But a local affiliate of the Islamic State (IS) extremist group has claimed several previous attacks against Shi'ite targets in Kabul in recent years.

Based on reporting by Reuters, AP, and AFP

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