Afghanistan: Wedding bombing death toll soars to 80

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - The death toll from Saturday’s Daesh-claimed suicide bombing at a wedding ceremony in Kabul climbed to 80, an official confirmed on Wednesday.

Earlier, Afghan officials said over 60 people were killed and nearly 200 injured in the suicide attack targeting a wedding hall in the capital city.

Interior Ministry spokesman Nusrat Rahimi told Anadolu Agency that 17 more victims succumbed to their wounds in different hospitals, taking the death toll to 80. More than 150 remains wounded.

The widely condemned suicide bombing at the Dubai City wedding hall on Darul Aman road caused havoc, killing mostly civilians including women and children.

Afghan President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani had said the Taliban cannot escape responsibility for this “barbaric attack” since they provided platform to the terrorists in the country.

“Taliban cannot absolve themselves of blame, for they provide platform for terrorists,” he said in a statement on Sunday.

Amid raging conflict across the country, traditional wedding parties have been an escape for the war-weary Afghans giving them some rare moments of happiness.

Footage circulating on social media showed bodies littered around the wedding hall and guests running for their lives.

After the wedding party attack, the Afghan National Security Council (NSC) on Tuesday dubbed the Daesh terror group as a persistent serious threat.

The Afghan NSC called for an international consensus to fight against the group.

“Daesh is behind dozens of deadly attacks against Afghan civilians and has posed a serious threat. This also threatens Afghanistan, the region and the world and it needs a national, regional and international consensus,” the NSC said in a statement.