24 people including babies were killed as gunmen engaged in a shoot-out with the police in the western part of Kabul in a hospital’s maternity ward. The reason for the perpetrators to have chosen the maternity ward still remains a mystery as investigations are underway regarding the same.
Post this incident close to 80 mothers and children have been evacuated from the hospital, reportedly run by the Doctors without Borders organisation and the area has been cordoned off by security officials.
Having entered the building dressed as policemen, the attackers had reportedly fired bullets and hand grenades, causing destruction to life and property.
The hospital’s neighbourhood consists predominantly of the Hazara Muslims, a Shia minority community, which had already been the focal point for ISIL attacks, with the most recent one being an attack at a death ceremony of their leader in March.
While the ISIL has claimed responsibility for a few other attacks in the recent past, there is no conclusive evidence about the identity of the perpetrators of this attack. Soon after the attack, the Taliban’s spokesperson announced that it had nothing to do with the attack. However, President Ashraf Ghani has blamed both the Taliban and the Islamic State group.
The attack comes at a time when the Afghan government had been holding diplomatic talks with the Taliban about maintaining peace in the region in exchange for phased release of inmates belonging to their group.