A suicide bomb and gun attack claimed by the militant Islamic State (IS) group on a Shia mosque in Kabul killed 20 people and wounded scores more on 25th August, officials said.
The mosque, in a residential area in the north of the city, was believed to have been packed with dozens of men, women and children when the assailants struck during Friday prayers.
IS claimed responsibility for the deadly assault via its propaganda agency. “Two ‘inghimasi’ of IS carried out an attack on a Husseiniya [a Shia place of worship] in the Khair Khana sector of the Afghan city of Kabul,” Amaq said, using the terms for suicide bombers who set off explosive vests as a last resort against gunfire.
After the blast at the Imam Zaman mosque in Afghan capital's Qala-Najara neighbourhood, gunmen stormed in and began shooting. Terrified worshippers endured about four harrowing hours of gunfire and explosions during the afternoon before the four attackers were killed.
ISIL-linked Aamaq website said on Friday two of its fighters carried out the assault. It did not give further details.
The attack was the latest by ISIL to hit the Afghan capital. Last month it hit the Iraqi embassy in Kabul and afterwards issued a warning to all Shia in Afghanistan, saying its cadres would attack Shia places of worship.
Within days of the embassy attack, ISIL also took responsibility for a suicide assault on a Shia mosque in western Herat province that killed 32 people.
Shia Islam in Afghanistan
Shia Islam in Afghanistan is practiced by a minority of the population; estimates around 20%. Afghan Shia are primarily the Twelvers, while a minority are Ismailis.
The majority of Afghan Shia are Twelvers, primarily of the Hazara ethnicity. The next-largest Twelver community are the Farsiwan of the western Herat and Farah provinces. Other, far smaller, Afghan Twelver communities include the Bayat and Qizilbash populations, as well as some of those who claim to be Sayeds.
A smaller portion of Afghan Shia is Nizari Ismailis; these populations include many of the Pamir language speakers of the northeastern portion of the country (predominantly in Badakhshan Province bordering Tajikistan).
Sectarian violence in Afghanistan
There has been so little evidence of sectarian violence that many ask how Afghanistan could have evolved so differently to Pakistan, where parts of the country have deep sectarian tensions. The answer lies in Afghanistan's recent history.
There has not been a proper census for more than 40 years, but it is estimated that around 20% of the population are Shia - the rest are Sunni. Most Shias come from the Tajik and Hazara ethnic minorities.
Hazaras, largely to be found in central provinces like Bamiyan, were relentlessly persecuted by the Taliban. Tajiks are spread across the country.
One reason for the absence of openly sectarian conflict in Afghanistan could be the absence of extremist religious groups throughout Afghan history.
Pakistan’s role in sectarian violence in Afghanistan
Regional players such as Iran and Pakistan supported specific ethnic groups and fuelled violence in the country.
But under Hamid Karzai's government, which came into being in 2001 after the downfall of the Taliban, all ethnic and religious groups had freedoms. A number of Afghanistan's private TV channels in Kabul are owned by religious figures and there are at least five Shia-only television channels.
Analysts believe the regional players of old still have a stake in Afghanistan's instability. Unity between Shias and Sunnis, and unity between ethnic groups and between political factions leaves no room for Iran or Pakistan to wield influence.