Islamic State terror group claims assault on Sikh gurdwara in Kabul

The Islamic State has claimed accountability for the lethal terror assault on a gurdwara right here in Afghanistan that killed two individuals, together with one Sikh neighborhood member, calling it “an act of support” for the Prophet.

In an announcement posted on its Amaq propaganda web site, the Islamic State Khorasan Province (ISKP), an affiliate of the Islamic State militant group, mentioned the assault on Saturday focused Hindus and Sikhs and the “apostates” who protected them in “an act of support for the Messenger of Allah”.

The dreaded terror group mentioned considered one of its fighters “penetrated a temple for Hindu and Sikh polytheists” in Kabul, after killing the guard, and opened fireplace on the worshippers inside along with his machine gun and hand grenades.

Several blasts tore by Gurdwara Karte Parwan in Kabul’s Bagh-e Bala neighbourhood on Saturday whereas Afghan safety personnel thwarted an even bigger tragedy by stopping an explosive-laden automobile from reaching the place of worship of the minority neighborhood within the war-torn nation.

It was the newest focused assault on a spot of worship of the Sikh neighborhood in Afghanistan.

The three attackers have been killed by the Taliban forces.

The terror assault on the gurdwara got here days after the ISKP in a video message warned of an assault in opposition to Hindus to avenge the remarks in opposition to Prophet Mohammad by two former BJP functionaries.

In the previous too, the ISKP has claimed accountability for assaults on locations of worship of Hindus, Sikhs and Shiites in Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the assault on the gurdwara in Kabul drew extreme criticism from Afghan leaders and the UN.

Former Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the assault and referred to as it a “terrorist incident.”

Abdullah Abdullah, former chairman of the Afghan High Council National Reconciliation, additionally condemned the assault.

“I strongly condemn…heinous and cowardly terrorist attack on our Sikh community Gurdwara in Karta-e Parwan,” Tolo information quoted Abdullah Abdullah as saying.

The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) on Twitter mentioned it “strongly condemns at the moment’s assault on a Sikh temple in Kabul.”

“Attacks on civilians should stop instantly,” the UNAMA said and called for the protection of all minorities in Afghanistan.

Afghanistan was once home to tens of thousands of Sikhs and Hindus, but decades of conflict have seen the number dwindle to a tiny handful.

In recent years, those who have remained have been repeatedly targeted by the local branch of the Islamic State (IS) militant group.

In 2018, a suicide bomber struck a gathering in the eastern city of Jalalabad, whilst another gurdwara was attacked in 2020.

“At the time of the assault in Jalalabad, there have been round 1,500 Sikhs, after that folks thought, ‘We cannot reside right here’,” Sukhbir Singh Khalsa told BBC.

More left after the attack in 2020, he added, and by the time the Taliban took power last year, there were less than 300 Sikhs. Now there are just around 150.

“All our historic gurdwaras have been martyred already, and now the one one which was left has been, too,” he mentioned.

Since the Taliban took energy in August final yr, Afghanistan has seen persevering with assaults by rival Sunni Muslim militant group Islamic State.