Photo: ReutersThe death toll from an explosion outside a school in Afghanistan's capital Kabul has risen to 58, Afghan officials said on Sunday, with doctors struggling to provide medical care to at least 150 injured. An eyewitness told Reuters all but seven or eight of the victims were schoolgirls going home after finishing studies. Afghan President Ashraf Ghani on Saturday blamed the attack on Taliban insurgents but a spokesman for the Taliban denied involvement, saying the group condemns any attacks on Afghan civilians. Families of the victims blamed the Afghan government and Western powers for failing to put an end to violence and the ongoing war. But the foreign troop withdrawal has led a surge in fighting between Afghan security forces and Taliban insurgents with both sides trying to retain control over strategic centres.

Source: Otago Daily Times May 09, 2021 03:11 UTC