In Afghanistan, a new deadly explosion occurred in a mosque on September 2, this time in the west in Herat. It is one of the largest mosques in the country’s third largest city to be hit. The act has not been claimed for the moment. At least 18 people were killed, according to the authorities, including the very influential imam of this mosque.
This is a significant loss for the Taliban. On Twitter, one of the government spokespersons expressed ” the deep sorrow of the Islamic Emirate “. ” Those responsible for this incident will be punished for their heinous acts “promised the spokesperson. Mujib ur Rahman Ansari was a very famous imam and above all a leading supporter of the Taliban. In early July, before an assembly of clerics in Kabul, he called for the beheading of anyone who tried to overthrow the regime in place.
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A series of explosions in recent months
According to the Herat police, Imam Ansari was killed along with his bodyguards and several civilians as he was about to enter the Gazargh mosque, one of the main ones in the city. For the moment, the information is fragmentary. Images posted on social media show bloodied bodies strewn around the mosque grounds.
Since taking over power in Kabul a year ago, the Taliban claim to have improved security in the country. But they couldn’t prevent a series of explosions months, especially at prayer time in busy mosques. Until now, it is the Islamic State in Korasan which has claimed responsibility for these attacks against the Taliban.