Terrorism

Kabul Blast Kills Dozens

Attack on Shiite Muslim shrine.

At least 54 people were killed and 100 more injured after a suicide attack at Abu-Ul Fazil, a Shiite shrine in the Afghan capital, Kabul. Hundreds of people had gathered there to mark the holiday of Ashoura, a holiday that Shiites were banned from celebrating under the Taliban. The Pakistani extremist group Lashkar-e-Jhangvi has claimed responsibility for the coordinated attacks, and many suspect it is being backed by al Qaeda, the Taliban, or the ISI. Separately, four people were killed in a bombing near a mosque in the northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif. Attacks on Shiites had been rare in Kabul since the fall of the Taliban; most targets have been Western groups and military. President Hamid Karzai canceled a visit to the U.K. to fly back after the bombings.