Hand grenade blast near school in Kabul injures at least 50

A hand grenade explosion near a school in Kabul’s predominantly Hazara neighbourhood of Dasht-e-Barchi injured several children on Monday afternoon, according to Afghan authorities and local media reports.

Kabul police spokesman Khalid Zadran confirmed that “a number of children” were wounded and said an investigation was underway, without giving further details. Local media reports put the number of injured at around 50 children, though the figure has not been independently verified.

Reports said the blast occurred around 4.30pm local time near the Shama-e Hidayat school, with several injured students taken to a nearby hospital. The cause of the explosion was reported as a hand grenade by Kabul Now and TOLOnews, but authorities have not publicly provided further details on who was behind the attack.

The blast took place in Dasht-e-Barchi, a western Kabul district largely populated by members of Afghanistan’s Hazara minority, who have faced repeated attacks and discrimination. The Islamic State’s Khorasan branch (ISIS-K) has previously targeted Hazaras, including in attacks on schools, mosques and other civilian sites.

UN special rapporteur on Afghanistan Richard Bennett condemned the attack, calling it “heinous” and saying an independent investigation was needed to hold those responsible to account. “Once again this mainly Hazara part of Kabul has been targeted. Deplorable!” he wrote.

In May 2021, three bombings outside a school in Dasht-e-Barchi killed dozens of people, most of them young girls from the Hazara community. No group has been identified as responsible for Monday’s blast in the reports provided.