41 killed as ISIS hits Shia cultural centre in Kabul

Kabul: Islamic State (ISIS) killed at least 41 people and injured more than 80 others in an attack on a Shia cultural centre and news agency that share a building in Kabul.

Deputy interior ministry spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said the attack — the deadliest since a Shiite mosque bombing in October that killed more than 50 worshippers — was aimed at the Tabayan cultural centre.

“The suicide attacker detonated himself during a gathering at Tabayan cultural centre causing a lot of casualties,” Mr Rahimi said.

The main explosion was followed by two smaller bomb blasts as victims and survivors were leaving the scene. Mr Rahimi said the gathering was organised to mark the 38th anniversary of Soviet invasion in Afghanistan. An Afghan Voice Agency journalist said that more than 100 people were at the event in the building’s basement.

The ISIS has claimed responsibility for the gruesome assault. There were chaotic scenes at the Istiqlal hospital where ambulances and police pickups brought victims, including women and children. Many of them had suffered severe burns to their faces and bodies, as well as shrapnel wounds.