The attack marked the second consecutive week that a Shia mosque in the country has been targeted, following a blast last Friday in the northeastern city of Kunduz, which left more than 100 worshippers dead.
“Terrorism continues in Afghanistan”, the UN mission in the country, UNAMA, said in a post on Twitter. “(The) UN condemns the latest atrocity targeting a religious institution and worshippers. Those responsible need to be held to account.”
In New York, UN Secretary-General António Guterres condemned the attack in the strongest terms, describing it as “despicable”, according to a statement issued by his Spokesperson.
“The perpetrators of this latest crime against civilians in Afghanistan exercising their right to freely practice their religion must be brought to justice,” it said.
The President of the UN General Assembly, Abdulla Shahid, has also strongly condemned the attack, Russia Today reported.
The UN Security Council issued a statement underlining the need to hold accountable perpetrators and organizers of “reprehensible acts of terrorism”, as well as those who finance or sponsor them.
Council members also underscored that any acts of terrorism are criminal and unjustifiable, regardless of their motivation.
At least 62 people have been killed and 68 others wounded after an explosion went off inside a Shia mosque in Afghanistan’s southern city of Kandahar, according to public health officials in the province.
The blast ripped through the city’s largest Shia mosque, known as Bibi Fatima Mosque or Imam Bargah Mosque, at about 1.30 p.m., its busiest time.
MA/PR