The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for a suicide bombing near a Shiite shrine in Afghanistan’s capital that targeted minority Shiites celebrating the Persian new year.
Afghan officials say the attack killed 29 people and wounded 52, updating an earlier toll.
The SITE Intelligence Group, which monitors jihadi websites, says the IS-run Aamaq news agency carried the claim for Wednesday’s attack. The statement says the attack targeted “a gathering of Shiites celebrating Nauruz.”
Shiites mark the Persian new year, known as Nauruz in Afghanistan, by visiting shrines. The Sunni extremists of the Islamic State group regularly target Shiites, who they view as apostates.