At least 15 people died and 34 were injured in two blasts near a hospital in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul on Tuesday, TOLO News reported.
The first explosion took place right in front of the Sardar Mohammad Daud Khan Hospital, Bilal Karimi, a spokesperson of the Taliban interim government said. Karimi said that the second blast also occurred in a locality near the hospital.
A security official told TOLO News that five gunmen entered the hospital after the blasts and clashed with Taliban fighters. Four of the gunmen have been killed and one has been arrested, the official said.
There are differing reports on the toll, with Reuters reporting that at least 25 people have died in the attack.
Hibatullah Jamal, an official of the country’s defence ministry, told AP that Taliban fighters were among those who died, but most of the deceased were civilians.
The hospital has been targeted by militants in the past as well. In 2011, suicide bombers affiliated to the Taliban blew themselves up inside the hospital, leaving six people dead and 26 injured, according to CNN.
In 2017, the Islamic State-Khorasan, an affiliate of terror group ISIS, had attacked the hospital, killing more than 30 persons.
In recent days, multiple explosions have been reported from Afghanistan. On October 15, at least 32 people were killed and 45 others injured in a series of explosions at a mosque in Kandahar city. Members of the minority Shia community were praying at the mosque when the blast took place.
On October 8, at least 50 people were killed in a blast at a mosque in the Kunduz province.
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