Suicide Bombing Kills 56

6 December 2011

A suicide bomber slaughtered 56 Shiite worshipers and wounded
more than 160 others today outside a Shiite shrine in the capital of Kabul.
Many people were devastated with the attack and were blasting a recitation of
the Quran. The Taliban condemned the attack and suspicion centered on militant
groups based in neighboring Pakistan where Sunni attacks on minority Shiites
are common. A man who belongs to a Pakistan-based group that has carried out
attacks against Shiite Muslims, called various media outlets claiming
responsibility for the bombing in Kabul. However, the validity of the claim
could not be determined. The decade long Afghan war has experienced an increase
in violence, where civilians are targeted for their membership in a particular
religious group. The Taliban are now generally refrained from mass attacks
against purely civilian targets. They usually focus instead on the U.S.-led coalition
Afghan forces or government offices. Today’s powerful explosion in Kabul was
the deadliest attack in the capital since 2008.

Source:http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/asia-pacific/twin-blasts-kill-at-least-20-in-rare-attack-on-shiites-in-afghanistan/2011/12/06/gIQAbnElYO_story.html

Reliability: 8.6