Kabul, once again, came under attack. Yesterday, a suicide bomber targeted the procession mourning the martyrdom of Imam Hussain, Prophet Muhammad's grandson. About sixty people including women and children have lost their lives while more than hundred are injured. The bomber detonated himself near a religious shrine located in a highly fortified area of Kabul city. In the same area, several ministries and other important government organizations are located. On the same day, in another attack by insurgents in Mazar e Sharif, at least four people were killed and several others got injured.
The Kabul attack takes place a day after Bonn conference on Afghanistan in which Hamid Karzai, quite proudly, talked about his achievements in security sector. But yesterday's incidents signal that ground realities are being wrongly presented to the world as security has gone worsening in the last ten years and government is failing to counter this situation.
By attacking the Muharram processions in Kabul and Mazar i Sharif, the terrorists have once again proved that they are neither Muslim nor Afghan. The religion of Islam in strong wordings prohibits such attacks and Afghans are great followers of Islam.
Afghanistan has not experienced such sectarian attacks in past, at least after ouster of Taliban in 2001. But if proper measures are not taken by government of Afghanistan, there is no doubt that hatred among people with different beliefs will be fuelled. This would be disastrous for a country that has burnt on fire in the last three decades. Such incidents are also going to greatly harm the national solidarity of Afghanistan and therefore must be prevented.
Lashkar Jangvi (LJ), a Pakistani based terrorist group with close links to al Qaida and Taliban, has claimed the responsibility of the attack in Kabul. LJ has been responsible for a series of sectarian attacks in Pakistan that have taken lives of hundreds of Shiite Muslims. But the Pakistani government has, disappointingly, failed to take any serious action against it. This has caused the LJ to extent their operations to Afghanistan.
It is the highest responsibility of a government to provide its citizens with peace and security. Same applies to the Afghan government but regretfully it has failed to fulfill its topmost responsibility.