A suicide attack has struck a peaceful demonstration by ethnic Hazaras in Kabul, killing more than 60 and injuring scores more, according to local reports. Following similar large scale protests in May, President Ashraf Ghani established a commission to look into the issue but government attempts to find a compromise had failed. Casualties are likely to rise as authorities get a better overview of the scale of the attack. Prior to the protests, leading Hazara representatives in the government had refused to endorse the protests, accusing them instead of fuelling ethnic tension. Yet, Hazaras have also increasingly been targeted in highway kidnappings, some of which have ended in killings of hostages.

Source: The Guardian July 23, 2016 12:11 UTC