Terror attacks kill 27 in Kabul

KABUL: Terror attacks near an education centre and on a bus in Kabul on Saturday left at least 27 people dead and scores of others injured.

A suicide bomber struck near an education centre in the Afghan capital, killing at least 18 people in the latest attack to rock the conflict-wracked country.

Violence on the ground has spiked in recent weeks despite the Taliban and the Afghan government holding peace talks in Qatar to end the country´s grinding war.

The suicide attack, which also wounded 57, happened late afternoon at the centre, which offers training and courses for students in higher education in a western district of Kabul.

“A suicide bomber wanted to enter the education centre,” Tareq Arian, spokesman for the interior ministry, said in a statement.

“But he was identified by the centre´s guards after which he detonated his explosives in an alley.”

He said the attack had left at least 18 people dead and 57 wounded.

“I was standing about 100 metres from the centre when a big blast knocked me down,” said local resident Ali Reza, who had gone to hospital with his cousin who was wounded in the blast.

“Dust and smoke was all around me. All those killed and wounded were students who wanted to enter the centre.”

The Islamic State (IS) group claimed responsibility for the attack.

A suicide bomber “set off towards a gathering... in Kabul, where he detonated his explosives jacket among” the crowd, IS said in a statement posted on its social media channels.

The suicide attack came hours after a roadside bomb tore through a bus east of Kabul, killing nine civilians. Officials blamed that blast on the Taliban.

On Friday, rights group Amnesty International said at least 50 people had been killed in attacks in the preceding week, accusing the Taliban and the Afghan government of failing to protect civilians.

“The world must sit up and take notice. Afghan civilians are being slaughtered on a daily basis,” said Omar Waraich, head of South Asia at Amnesty International.

“The international community must make the protection of civilians a core demand for their ongoing support of the peace process.”

The top US envoy to Afghanistan, Zalmay Khalilzad, said earlier this week that fighting was threatening the peace process. – AFP

APP adds: Pakistan condemned in the strongest possible terms the inhuman terrorist attack outside an educational centre in Dasht-e-Barchi area of Kabul city that resulted in loss of innocent lives, including children, and injuries to several others. “We extend our heartfelt sympathies and condolences to the families of the victims and pray for early recovery of those injured. Pakistan condemns terrorism in all its forms and manifestations and will continue to support a peaceful and stable Afghanistan,” Foreign office spokesperson said in a press release.