US condemns terror attack on mosques in Kabul and Ghor, hails Afghan security forces for response to blasts

Washington: The US on Friday condemned the terrorist attacks on two mosques in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul and Ghor province in which at least 63 people were killed. During Friday prayers, suicide bombers on Thursday struck a Shiite mosque in Kabul and a Sunni mosque in western Ghor province. [caption id=“attachment_4162363” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] The inside of the mosque damaged in suicide bombing in Kabul. AP[/caption] “In the face of these senseless and cowardly acts, our commitment to Afghanistan is unwavering,” State Department spokesperson Heather Nauert said. The United States stands with the government and people of Afghanistan and will continue to support their efforts to achieve peace and security for their country, she said. In a statement, Nauert strongly condemned the attacks, as well as the other attacks carried out across the country this week. She hailed the Afghan government and its security forces for their response to the attacks. “We commend the government and security forces of Afghanistan for their response to these attacks, and we offer our deepest condolences to the families and friends of those who were killed,” the spokesperson said. In the attack in Kabul, a suicide bomber walked into the Imam Zaman Mosque, a Shiite mosque in the western Dashte-e-Barchi neighbourhood where he detonated his explosives vest, killing 30 and wounding 45, said Major General Alimast Momand at the interior ministry. The suicide bombing in Ghor struck a Sunni mosque, also during Friday prayers and killed 33 people, including a warlord who was apparently the target of the attack, said Mohammad Iqbal Nizami, the spokesman for the provincial chief of police. No group immediately claimed responsibility for either attack, the latest in a devastating week that saw Taliban attacks kill scores across the war-torn country.