Afghanistan: EI group's deadly attack on a Sikh temple in Kabul

Text by: RFI Follow

At least 25 people were killed on Wednesday in an attack on a Hindu-Sikh temple in Kabul, claimed by the Islamic State group.

Publicity

With our regional correspondent, Sonia Ghezali

Large streaks of blood on the ground, the entrance gate in smashed gray iron. The photos of the Dharamsala temple circulating on social networks show the violence of the attack. This lasted nearly six hours.

It started early this Wednesday morning with an explosion. A suicide bomber detonated his charge according to first accounts. Neighbors say they heard several detonations. Confusion reigns. Difficult to determine the number of attackers who entered the Hindu-Sikh temple while several worshipers were in prayer.

Nearly 80 people evacuated

Afghan security forces will take several hours before they can evacuate dozens of women and children. Outside, the wounded are transported on stretchers. The official death toll shows at least 25 dead, eight injured and some 80 people rescued.

It is not the first time that the Islamic State group has attacked the Sikh community. In July 2018, a convoy of Sikh representatives had been targeted by a suicide attack in Jalalabad, in the east of the country. Ten people had been killed, among the victims Avtar Singh Khalsa, the only Sikh candidate in the parliamentary elections.

In Afghanistan, violence continues as the Taliban and Afghan authorities struggle to agree on the start of intra-Afghan peace talks.

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• Afghanistan
• Terrorism
• EI