Explosion in Kabul targets Shias protesting insecurity, 6 killed

An explosion, possibly carried out by a suicide bomber, near a rally involving Shias in the Afghan capital on Monday killed at least six people, witnesses and officials said.

An explosion, possibly carried out by a suicide bomber, near a rally involving Shias in the Afghan capital on Monday killed at least six people, witnesses and officials said.

According to the Washington Post, hundreds of members of the Shia religious minority have been protesting since Sunday evening outside the presidential palace over the government’s inability to stop a string of attacks on predominantly Shia regions in the center of the country dominated by the ethnic Hazaras, who are mostly Shias. Police said the protesters were the target of the attack.

No group has taken responsibility for the attack, although, affiliates of the Daesh (ISIL or ISIS) terrorist group have claimed many of the strikes against Shias, including one that killed scores of anti-government protesters in summer of 2016.

The hard line insurgent movement considers the Shia branch of Islam to be a heresy and often targets Shia civilians.

Estimates vary widely of the number of Shias in the country but they are believed to make up more than 10 percent of the population.