At least 19 people were killed when a suicide bomber exploded himself at an educational institute in the capital city of Afghanistan, Kabul. 

Over 27 were wounded earlier today when the blast rocked the city in the the Dasht-e-Barchi neighbourhood of western Kabul, a largely Shia Muslim area and home to the minority Hazara community, police spokesman Khalid Zadran said.

“Students were preparing for an exam when a suicide bomber struck at this educational centre. Unfortunately, 19 people have been martyred and 27 others wounded,” he said.

Videos and photos portray harrowing images of victims stained in blood as they were being rushed to the hospital. The victims were high school graduates, both girls and boys, who were taking a practice university entrance exam at the Kaj education centre when the blast thundered through the walls as schools are usually closed in Afghanistan on Fridays.

According to one wounded student, the victims were mostly girls.\

“We were around 600 (students) in the classroom, but most of the casualties are among girls,” the male student told the AFP news agency from the hospital where he was being treated.

No group has immediately claimed responsibility. Iran, one of the first countries to react to the deadly blasts, has strongly condemned the attack as ‘barbaric’, and have urged the Taliban to provide security to the Afghans.

The Iranian Foreign Ministry spokesman Nasser Kan’ani said the deadly attack on “innocent youth who had participated in a scientific test is a barbaric action and is against religious teachings and basic human principles.”

He also expressed remorse towards the families of the victims who are devastated at the drastic turn of events.

The students were giving their entrance mock exam when dozens of men stormed into the center with one detonating a suicide belt inside the classroom.

A suicide explosion at an education institute in #Afghanistan's capital of #Kabul reportedly killed 19 people and injured 29 more pic.twitter.com/fju5eUxUrN

— Ghulam Abbas Shah (@ghulamabbasshah) September 30, 2022

The terrorist groups are yet to claim responsibility, however, the notorious ISIS group are infamous for their animosity towards the Hazara community and have launched attacks against the Hazara for years at a stretch.

The Hazara community are one of the poorest of Afghanistan’s ethnic groups and they make up 22% of Afghanistan’s population. They have been heavily targeted in several mass kidnappings and killings across the country.

Back in May 2021, over 85 people mostly female students were mercilessly killed with 300 women wounded when three bombs exploded near there school in the Dash-e-Barchi Nieghbourhood.

In May 2020, the group was blamed for an atrocious attack on a maternity ward of a hospital that killed 25 people, including new mothers.

In October 2020, Daesh admitted to attacking an educational center in the same area that killed 24 people, including students.

Over the years, ISIS has heavily targeted the minority Hazara community, mercilessly killing and abusing them. As the world’s eyes have been fixated on protests in the name of Mahsa Amini, the Hazara community continue to be shunned away with barely any coverage let alone protests in their name.