On Monday, the Islamic State claimed responsibility for a suicide blast at a Chinese restaurant that resulted in the death of more than six people.
Abdul Mateen Qani, a spokesperson for the Afghan Interior Ministry, stated that the attack was carried out by an individual affiliated with ISIS-Khorasan, commonly known as ISIS-K, one of the terrorist group’s most deadly branches.
According to The Times, ISIS-K has claimed that it targets Chinese citizens in retaliation against …, a Muslim minority group, and has also criticized the Afghan government’s relationship with China.
Khalid Zadran, spokesman for the Kabul police command, said on X that seven people were killed in the explosion, including six Afghans and one Chinese national. Several others were injured.
Zadran said the blast occurred around 3 p.m. local time at a restaurant in Kabul’s Shahr-e-Naw neighborhood that was co-run by Abdul Majeed, a Chinese Muslim from Xinjiang province, his wife, and an Afghan named Abdul Jabbar Mahmoud.
“The explosion took place near the kitchen. The nature of the explosion is still unknown, and investigations are ongoing,” he added.
Guo Jiakun, spokesperson for China’s Foreign Ministry, said at a press conference on Tuesday that one Chinese national was killed and five others were wounded in the attack.
Jiakun offered condolences to the families and mentioned that officials from the Chinese Embassy in Afghanistan had visited the wounded in the hospital. He stated that China urged the Afghan government to do more to ensure the safety of Chinese nationals and institutions.
“China strongly condemns and firmly opposes …, and supports Afghanistan and regional countries in jointly fighting all forms of terrorist and violent activities,” he said.
“Given the current security situation in Afghanistan, the ministry once again advises Chinese nationals not to travel to Afghanistan in the near future and asks Chinese nationals and companies already in Afghanistan to take extra precautions, strengthen security, and depart high-risk regions as soon as possible.”