ISIS Claims Responsibility For Deadly Afghan Mosque Blast

• The attack came a week after a bombing claimed by the local Islamic State affiliate killed 46 people at a Shiite mosque in northern Afghanistan

EKO HOT BLOG reports that the Islamic State group (ISIS) has claimed responsibility for a deadly suicide bombing on a Shiite mosque in southern Afghanistan that killed 47 people and wounded several others.

In a statement posted late Friday on social media, ISIS said two of the group’s members shot and killed security guards manning the entrance of the Fatimiya mosque in Kandahar province.

One detonated his explosives at the entrance of the mosque and the other inside.

IS’s news agency Amaq in a statement gave the names of the attackers as Anas al-Khurasani and Abu Ali al-Baluchi, both Afghan nationals.

Read also: At Least 32 Dead In Another Afghanistan Mosque Blast

The attack came a week after a bombing claimed by the local Islamic State affiliate killed 46 people at a Shiite mosque in northern Afghanistan, raising fears that IS — an enemy of both the Taliban and the West — is expanding its foothold in Afghanistan.

Friday’s attack was the deadliest to strike Afghanistan since the United State’s exit from the country, which allowed the Taliban to seize control of the Afghan capital.

It was also the first major attack by the group in the country’s south.

ISIS carries out frequent attacks in its eastern stronghold, but recently has shown signs of expansion, with attacks in the north and Kabul.

The attacks have brought into question the Taliban’s ability to counter the growing terrorism threats.

However, the Taliban have pledged to restore peace and security after decades of war and have also given the US assurances that they will not allow the country to be used as a base for launching extremist attacks on other countries.

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