The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan’s (IEA) Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi had a telephone conversation with his Pakistani and Iranian counterparts, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari and Hossein Amir-Abdollahian on Thursday night.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister, in this special telephone conversation with Muttaqi discussed the brutal attack which took place near the entrance of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs on Wednesday, resulting in the death and injury of scores of Afghan people.

Zardari condemned the attack in the strongest terms and expressed his deep condolences to the families of those who lost their valuable lives in Wednesday’s terror attack. He said both people of Pakistan and Afghanistan are victims of terrorism, and we must do all we can to defeat this menace.

Muttaqi thanked his Pakistani counterpart for expressing his condolences and sympathy and added that the enemy want to disturb the security but the Afghan government and the people will strictly prevent them.

The Foreign Ministers of both countries emphasized taking decisive actions against the common enemy which threatens the security of the governments and the people of both countries.

In the meantime, the Iranian foreign minister on Thursday also condemned the deadly “terror” attack outside Afghanistan’s Foreign Ministry in the capital Kabul, saying terrorism is the common enemy of all regional states.

During the phone call with Muttaqi, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian said the “terrorist attack” was “very saddening” and Iran vigorously condemns it, according to a statement posted on the Iranian Foreign Ministry’s website.

Amir-Abdollahian likened Wednesday’s attack in Kabul to a deadly “terrorist attack” at the Shahcheragh shrine in Iran’s southern city of Shiraz in late October of 2022, calling for a “united policy” to confront terrorists.

For his part, Muttaqi underlined the necessity of fighting terrorism decisively through cooperation among all neighboring states.

The UN Assistant Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) also condemned the attack and stated that violence is not part of any solution to bring lasting peace to Afghanistan. 

Meanwhile, the UK Chargé d’Affaires Hugo Shorter, Qatar’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of China, Iran’s Embassy in Kabul, and the Organization of Islamic Cooperation extended their deep condolences to the families of the victims and wished the wounded a quick recovery.

Humanitarian medical NGO Emergency said its surgical center in Kabul had taken in more than 40 people who had been wounded in Wednesday’s explosion outside the Afghan Foreign Ministry complex.

“We have received more than 40 patients in the hospital, it is difficult to draw up a final number, we are continuing to respond,” Emergency’s Country Director in Afghanistan Stefano Sozza said, as quoted by the organization.