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Bullet-scarred walls, blood-stained floors bear testimony to deadly attack
Bullet-riddled walls, blown out ceilings and blood spattered floors were on Tuesday stark testimony to the carnage caused by attackers who went on a shooting rampage at Kabul University on Monday.
Video footage and photographs taken by Ariana journalists in the classrooms at the Law Faculty paint an extremely disturbing picture, driving home the fact that the majority of those killed were young students in their early 20s who were robbed of their dreams and aspirations by the ruthless killers.
In the 24 hours since the end of the six-hour siege, messages of condolences and condemnation flooded social media and while Tuesday was declared a day of mourning in Afghanistan, many foreign embassies flew their flags at half mast in solidarity with a grieving nation.
Officials have put the death toll at 22 but sources told Reuters earlier Tuesday that 30 died in the carnage.
One of the students killed in Monday’s attack was due to marry on Thursday. All his classmates were invited but instead, a funeral was held in place of a wedding. On Tuesday, the shocking reality of this was visible in the blood spattered copies of his wedding invitations that were strewn across a classroom floor.
“Each of our classes had 50 to 70 students, many of whom were victims,” said Saifullah Mohammadi, a gardener at the law faculty.
One student who survived was stunned that the university had come under attack. He said: “It was horrible, I could not believe that university could be targeted.”
This is the second education facility to be targeted in just over a week – and in both cases ISIS (Daesh) claimed responsibility.
However, Afghanistan’s outspoken First Vice President Amrullah Saleh has dismissed the Taliban’s claims of not being involved and has blamed the insurgent group for Monday’s attack.
In a tweet early Tuesday morning, Saleh said a Taliban negotiator in Doha stated in an exclusive interview that “only the Taliban have the monopoly over violence against government. There is no one else.”
Saleh went on to say: “Today they shamelessly disclaim responsibility for massacre of Kabul Uni students. Taliban, their allies & backers are responsible.”
Nader Nadery, a member of the Afghan peace talks team also commented on Twitter and said late Tuesday “Kabul University is a symbol of unity & national identity, a home to many generations of Afghans, poor & rich, a compass of moral authority, a place for brotherhood & sisterhood that ties our people together over a century.
“The atrocity committed against it yesterday is an attack on the soul of our nation. While we all are mourning, we must not give in to what terrorists want: we must make sure to keep the door of this sacred place open. This will be the best way to avenge loss of those innocent souls,” Nadery tweeted.
He also stated that those responsible must be brought to justice.
“To end this senseless violence, an immediate ceasefire is a must so a dignified peace could be achieved. We/ IRoA team showed every sign of urgency in this regard, will the other side show the same & prove that it was not them?” he questioned.
Following the concerns over terrorist threats from Afghanistan, the United States Institute of Peace (USIP) says in a report that terrorist threats against US interests from Afghanistan and Pakistan are steadily rising.
The report stated that “Afghanistan presents growing space for terrorist groups compared to the period before the U.S. withdrawal.”
“ISIS-K [Daesh] presents a rising threat with reach beyond the immediate region, greater than during the pre-withdrawal period,” the report reads.
It added that “The Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) terrorist group has also returned as a regional security threat.”
“The study group’s final report evaluated and put forth policy options to mitigate terrorist threats and safeguard U.S. interests in Afghanistan and Pakistan, while maintaining the current focus on strategic competition,” the report added.
“Unfortunately, the geography of Afghanistan and the relations of terrorist groups in the region have caused the countries of the region and the world to express concern about possible challenges. The Islamic Emirate should take measures to form an inclusive government so that the spirit of the regional fight against terrorism is practically strengthened and launched,” said a military expert.
Meanwhile, the Islamic Emirate has called the report “baseless” and said that it has no relationship with al-Qaeda and that Daesh has been suppressed in Afghanistan.
IEA’s deputy spokesman Hamdullah Fetrat added that there is no terrorist group in Afghanistan and the government does not allow Afghan soil to be used against other countries.
“The Islamic Emirate has repeatedly said that Afghanistan’s soil will not be used against the interests of countries. Once again, we assure the countries of the world and the region that Afghanistan’s soil will not be used against their interests, nor is Afghanistan a threat to them,” Fetrat stressed.
An Afghan prisoner in Delhi stabbed another prisoner to death on Friday after a dispute over food, the Times of India reported.
The deceased was identified as Deepak Soni, who was 29-year-old.
The killer has been identified as Abdul Basir Akhundzada who is 44 years old.
Abdul Basir Akhundzadeh had been arrested in connection with a case of attempted murder in Lajpet Nagar area of New Delhi in 2019.
Soni had been arrested in connection with the case of robbery and murder in 2018.
Zakia Wardak, Afghanistan’s consul general in India’s Mumbai city, resigned on Saturday, following reports of gold smuggling.
The Times of India has reported that Wardak was caught at Mumbai airport with 25 kilograms of gold smuggled from Dubai.
While announcing her resignation, Wardak said on X that over the past year, she had encountered numerous personal attacks and defamation not only directed towards her but also towards her close family and extended relatives.
“These attacks, which appear to be organized, have severely impacted my ability to effectively operate in my role and have demonstrated the challenges faced by women in Afghan society who strive to modernize and bring positive change amidst ongoing propaganda campaigns,” she said.
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