Seven people were killed and 41 injured, including children, when a car packed with explosives blew up outside a mosque in Kabul’s Wazir Akbar Khan area.
The explosion took place after Friday prayers ended, as worshippers were leaving. While the mosque is often attended by Taliban commanders and fighters, the Taliban’s spokesperson stated that all of the casualties are civilians.
No group has claimed responsibility yet.
This is the seventh incident of explosive violence that AOAV has recorded in Afghanistan in September 2022, bringing the toll of September’s civilian casualties to 134 (36 killed, 98 injured).
The majority of civilian casualties in September, 66% (89), have occurred in places of worship, followed by 13% in public buildings, 12% in entertainment venues, 6% in urban residential areas, and 3% in markets.
Non-specific IEDs are reportedly responsible for 57% (77) of civilian casualties, while car bombs caused 36% of civilian casualties and grenades 7%.
In 2022 overall, AOAV has recorded 79 incidents of explosive violence in Afghanistan, and 1,062 civilian casualties (349 killed, 713 injured). Places of worship remain the most injurious location in Afghanistan: 49% (517) of civilian casualties of explosive violence in Afghanistan in 2022 occurred in mosques, followed by 8% in villages and markets respectively.
Non-specific IEDs also remain the most injurious explosive weapon in Afghanistan throughout 2022, causing a reported 71% (752) of civilian casualties. 7% of civilian casualties in that time were caused by grenades and car bombs respectively.
AOAV’s casualty figures represent the lowest of estimations in terms of the number of people killed and injured by explosive weapon use. In an effort to quantify the explicit harm caused by specific explosive weapons, AOAV solely records incident-specific casualty figures, as reported in English-language media.
AOAV condemns the use of violence against civilians and the use of explosive weapons in populated areas. All actors should stop using explosive weapons with wide-area effects where there is likely to be a high concentration of civilians.
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