Grenade Explosion at Afghan School Injures 42 Children

A grenade explosion at an education centre in Kabul has injured at least 42 children, according to the UN mission in Afghanistan. The cause of the blast has been attributed to a grenade.

Richard Bennett, the UN special rapporteur for human rights in Afghanistan, condemned the attack near a school in the Dasht-e-Barchi area of western Kabul, a district home to the Shia Hazara community that has historically been subjected to persecution.

The victims were aged between nine and 14, according to the UN mission, UNAMA. “UNAMA has not yet confirmed the sequence of events surrounding the explosion,” a spokesperson said, noting there were “conflicting reports as to whether this was an attack or the result of unexploded ordnance.”

Decades of conflict have left Afghanistan littered with remnants of war; the country records the third-highest casualty rate in the world, according to the UN.

The Directorate of Mine Action Coordination of Afghanistan, which has inspected the site, stated that a grenade exploded at the school, consistent with details previously provided by Kabul police.

“Our thoughts are with the injured children and their families,” UNAMA said. “We urge an investigation to uncover the sequence of events in this incident. Schools and education centres must always be safe.”

The private primary school posted a message on its Facebook page asking the public to pray for the injured, without providing further details.

The explosion occurred just as school was letting out, according to a 38-year-old resident who lives nearby. “So many people were injured that I could not count them,” he said, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons.

Sporadic attacks have occurred in Kabul during the five years of Taliban rule, including an explosion at a Chinese restaurant in the city centre in January that killed at least seven people.

Several deadly explosions have also occurred in the Dasht-e-Barchi area, including a car bomb attack outside a girls’ school in 2021 that killed at least 90 people and injured hundreds more.

The Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for various attacks in Dasht-e-Barchi, targeting Shia Muslims whom they consider heretics.