Dozens dead after suicide bombers target Afghan minority group

At least 80 people were killed and more than 200 injured Saturday when a suicide bomber struck the Afghan city of Kabul during a demonstration held by a Shiite minority group.

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the attack, one among a flurry of recent strikes tied to the self-proclaimed caliphate inside the country but the first to touch down on the capital city in recent years, according to the Associated Press. Saturday’s strike appears to be the deadliest in months to hit Afghanistan.

The bombing occurred as members of the Hazara, a Persian-speaking minority group in the Sunni-dominated country, held protests calling for a new power line to be re-routed to a Afghan region with a large Hazara populace.

The shoes of victims are seen at the site of blast in Kabul, Afghanistan July 23, 2016. Photos By Omar Sobhani/Reuters

As thousands gathered in a city square, two suicide bombers targeted the demonstrators but one was shot by police before an explosive device could be detonated, the authorities said. Another assailant managed to detonate a device, with photos and videos showing bodies strewn across the square where the crowd had gathered.

The Afghan government said it had warned the protesters they may be attacked and cordoned off much of the city.

“We had intelligence over recent days and it was shared with the demonstration organizers, we shared our concerns because we knew that terrorists wanted to bring sectarianism to our community,” presidential spokesman Haroon Chakhansuri told the Associated Press.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani proclaimed Sunday would be a day of national mourning and called for an investigation into the attack.

“I promise you I will take revenge against the culprits,” Ghani said.