KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for an explosion at a Chinese restaurant in Afghanistan’s capital that killed at least seven people, including a Chinese national. The cause of the blast was still under investigation, authorities said Tuesday.
The militant group said in a statement posted on its Aamaq news agency late Monday that a suicide bomber entered a restaurant frequented by Chinese nationals in the city and detonated an explosive vest during a gathering. It said that 25 people were killed or wounded in the attack, including Taliban guards. The details couldn’t be independently verified.
Afghan authorities haven’t officially confirmed the cause of the explosion on Monday, and Interior Ministry spokesperson Mufti Abdul Mateen Qani said Tuesday that it was still being investigated.
The IS claim corresponded in style to previous ones issued by the group, and supporters of the militants widely shared it early Tuesday. The claim included a further threat against Chinese nationals in Afghanistan, linking the attack to China’s treatment of Uyghur Muslims.
While nearly all nations pulled out of Afghanistan following the Taliban offensive of 2021 that led to them seizing Kabul, China has maintained a major economic presence in the country. Beijing has yet to diplomatically recognize Afghanistan’s Taliban-run government.
On Tuesday, China advised its citizens not to travel to Afghanistan in the near term after the bombing, and asked Chinese people and companies already in the country to strengthen security measures and evacuate from high-risk areas.
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“China strongly condemns and resolutely opposes terrorism in all forms and supports Afghanistan and countries in the region in jointly combating all forms of terrorist violent acts,” Foreign Ministry spokesperson Guo Jiakun said at a daily briefing in Beijing.
He said that one Chinese national was killed and five others were wounded. He added that China is urging Afghan authorities “to make every effort to treat the injured, further take effective measures to protect the safety of Chinese nationals (and) projects,” and to find and punish the perpetrators.
The attack happened at a Chinese restaurant in the Shahr-e-Naw district in the city, according to police spokesperson Khalid Zadran. He said Monday that the restaurant was jointly owned by an Afghan man, a Chinese national and his wife.
Zadran said that one Chinese national and six Afghans were killed and several others were wounded. The blast occurred near the restaurant’s kitchen, he said.
The Italian charity EMERGENCY, which operates a surgical center near the site, said Monday that it received 20 casualties from the blast, including seven people who were already dead. The number of victims remained provisional, the organization said.
Chinese state broadcaster CCTV reported two Chinese citizens were seriously wounded and a security guard was killed. Footage aired by Afghan broadcaster Tolo News showed people running along the street as smoke and dust billowed from the area.
Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari condemned the explosion, which he attributed to a bomb, in a statement issued by his office. He accused Afghanistan’s Taliban government of failing to uphold ceasefire agreements, particularly commitments to prevent militant groups from using Afghan territory to carry out attacks.
His comments followed an announcement by Tajik authorities that border guards killed four gunmen who crossed into the country from Afghanistan overnight. Afghan officials said that the men were drug smugglers. Kabul has repeatedly said that it doesn’t allow its territory to be used by militant groups.
The Islamic State group has been behind some attacks in Afghanistan since the Taliban returned to power in 2021.
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Samy Magdy contributed to this report from Cairo.
