A suicide bomber detonated explosives in Kabul, Afghanistan, killing at least six people and injuring 13 others, according to local police and the Ministry of Interior Affairs. The explosion occurred on Monday in the Qala-e-Bakhtiar area of southern Kabul.
Among the victims was a woman, and all those injured were civilians who were taken to the hospital for treatment. An investigation is underway, but no group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Although violence in Afghanistan has decreased since the Taliban took over in 2021, the ISIL (ISIS) affiliate in Khorasan Province remains active, frequently targeting civilians, foreigners, and Taliban officials.
This group is considered the largest security threat in Afghanistan and has also targeted Shia communities.
One of the most deadly ISIL-linked attacks since the Taliban’s rise to power occurred in 2022 when a suicide bombing at a Kabul education center killed at least 53 people, including 46 girls and young women.
The last suicide attack claimed by ISIL in Afghanistan was in March, in the city of Kandahar.
Taliban government spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid recently claimed that ISIL had been “suppressed very hard” and that no groups existed in Afghanistan that could pose a significant threat, though Monday’s attack suggests ongoing security challenges.