At least 12 people were killed and scores of people were injured as a series of explosions ripped through a funeral procession in Kabul on Saturday, eye witnesses told Reuters. However, the Afghan media reported the toll to be as high as 18.
Health Ministry spokesperson Wahidullah Majroh said six bodies had been recovered so far, reported The New York Times. The explosions took place at the funeral for Mohammad Salim Izadyar, the son of the deputy Senate speaker. Izadyar had died during anti-government protests on June 2.
Among those injured included several senior security officials. However, Government Chief Executive Abdullah Abdullah and Foreign Minister Salahuddin Rabbani, who were present at the funeral, were unharmed. “Barbaric terrorists have turned a funeral into a slaughterhouse,” said Rabbani, according to The New York Times.
While the Taliban’s spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid denied any role, no other group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. Mujahid said the attack was a fallout of factional rivalries in the government, according to Reuters.
The attack comes four days after a truck bomb had killed 90 people and injured more than 350. The Afghanistan intelligence had accused Taliban-allied Haqqani network of perpetrating the blast in Kabul.
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