The Islamic State group claimed responsibility Tuesday for a suicide bombing in Kabul that killed at least six people on Monday, citing the Taliban’s reactivation of detention facilities at the Bagram base as motivation.
The attack targeted people working with judicial services, according to the Islamic State’s Telegram channel. The group claimed 45 people, including Taliban members, were killed. These figures could not be independently verified by Reuters.
Kabul police reported that all six confirmed casualties were civilians. The intended target of the bombing was not specified.
Islamic State said the attack was retaliation for the treatment of Muslim prisoners in Taliban prisons, particularly their transfer to the Bagram facility. “The attack came in retaliation for Muslim prisoners in Taliban prisons, especially after their transfer to the notorious ‘Bagram’ prison, in a repeat of the American era and its practices against prisoners,” the group stated.
Bagram, a Soviet-built airstrip, served as the main U.S. base in Afghanistan from 2001 until the American withdrawal in 2021. The CIA used it as a “black site” detention center for terrorism suspects in the early years of the Afghan war, with practices later acknowledged as torture by President Barack Obama.
Mohammad Yusuf Mestari, acting head of prison administration under the Taliban government, announced Sunday that the Bagram prison was being “reactivated” after years of disuse. He confirmed some prisoners had been transferred there but did not specify their identities.
The Islamic State’s local affiliate, Islamic State-Khurasan, has been waging an insurgency against the Taliban, whom they consider enemies. Taliban authorities claim to have largely suppressed the group, despite ongoing attacks in Afghanistan.
The Taliban-run interior ministry has not immediately responded to requests for comment on the bombing.
This attack follows a series of Islamic State-claimed incidents globally, including a stabbing in Germany, a concert hall assault in Moscow, and a memorial bombing in Iran.
