By Shadi Khan Saif
KABUL, Afghanistan (AA): A suicide blast in the Afghan capital Kabul on Wednesday killed at least 31 people, officials and local media reported.
Nusrat Rahimi, deputy spokesman for the Interior Ministry, confirmed a suicide bomber targeted a Nevruz (Nowruz) [Spring Festival] gathering in the capital’s Karta-e-Sakhi neighborhood killing 31 people, mostly civilians and policemen.
According to local Azadi Radio, at least 65 people were wounded in the attack.
The site of the blast is close to a shrine considered sacred by the country’s ethnic Shia Muslim Hazara community, where the annual gathering to mark Nevruz is held.
President Ashraf Ghani condemned the terrorist attack as “a crime against humanity.”
Daesh claimed responsibility, according to the SITE Intelligence Group. The terrorist group identified the bomber as a Pakistani man, saying he detonated his suicide vest amidst the gathering in the Kart-e-Sakhi area.
The Nevruz festival on March 21 has been celebrated for more than 18 centuries across Anatolia and Asia.
The March 21 festival is celebrated mainly in Iran, Afghanistan, India, and Turkic republics such as Azerbaijan, Caucasus countries, Albania and Macedonia.
The festival — which is considered as a forerunner of spring — is UN-recognized international cultural day.
Additional report by The Muslim News
[Photo: Afghan security officials inspect the suicide attack site in Kabul, Afghanistan on March 21, 2018. Photographer: Haroon Sabawoon/AA]
