Alwaght- Iran's Leader Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei has condemned terrorist attack on a Shiite mosque in Afghanistan's Kunduz, urging the neighboring country's authorities to punish the perpetrators behind the "the bitter and tragic incident".
Ayatollah Khamenei in a Saturday announcement said “The bitter, tragic incident involving a blast at the mosque of Khanabad district of Kunduz province, which resulted in the deaths of a large number of faithful worshippers, saddened us. Authorities in the neighboring and brotherly country of Afghanistan are seriously expected to punish the bloodthirsty perpetrators of this heinous crime and take necessary measures to prevent a recurrence of such tragedies.”
The Leader also asked God to bestow mercy and the highest heavenly blessings upon the souls of the martyrs of the incident, and prayed for the immediate recovery of the wounded and patience for the bereaved.
On Friday, a bomber attacked a Shiite mosque in Afghanistan’s northeastern Kunduz province, killing and injuring hundreds of worshippers. The ISIS terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack.
The attack followed other similar ones in Afghanistan in recent weeks.
Since the Taliban took power in the country, the ISIS’ branch there has ramped up attacks.
The Taliban have vowed to eradicate ISIS.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for the militant group told The Associated Press on Saturday that it would not work with the US to eradicate ISIS in Afghanistan.
“We are able to tackle SIS independently,” Taliban political spokesman Suhail Shaheen told AP, when asked whether the Taliban would cooperate with the US to contain the notorious terrorist group.
Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf also condoled with the Afghan nation and those who lost their loved ones, while calling on the country’s new authorities to act decisively against the culprits and prevent a recurrence of such painful atrocities targeting people of different religions.
“The criminal hand of the foolish terrorists was once again stained with the blood of the oppressed worshipers in line with anti-Islam [bigotry] and Islamophobia,” Qalibaf wrote in his message.
Criticizing those who seemingly champion human rights over their silence in the face of the terrorist attack, the parliament speaker said the international community is expected to condemn such tragedies, introduce the already-infamous sponsors of terrorists, and commit them for trial.
