KABUL — A suicide bomber targeted a gathering of Muslim religious scholars in the Afghan capital on Tuesday, killing at least 40 people, Afghan officials said. The suicide bomber was able to sneak into a wedding hall in Kabul where hundreds of religious scholars and clerics had gathered to mark the occasion, Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said. No one immediately claimed the attack, but both the Taliban and a local Islamic State affiliate have targeted religious scholars aligned with the government in the past. IS claimed a suicide bombing in June that targeted a meeting of the country’s top clerics in the capital. The body of religious leaders targeted in June, known as the Afghan Ulema Council, had issued a decree against suicide attacks and called for peace talks.

Source: National Post November 20, 2018 14:37 UTC