Iran Fully Supports Afghanistan’s Fight against Terror: Speaker

In separate messages to the Afghan Speaker of Wolesi Jirga (House of the People), Abdul Rauf Ibrahimi, and the Speaker of Mesherano Jirga (House of Elders), Fazel Hadi Muslimyar, on Friday, Larijani expressed his sympathy with the country’s government, nation and the bereaved families of the victims of the Wednesday terror attack.

“The Islamic Republic of Iran stands by the government and nation of the friendly and neighboring country of Afghanistan in the fight against terrorism and the establishment of peace and security in this country and will spare no efforts in this regard,” the top Iranian parliamentarian said.

He added that terrorism and extremism pose a threat to the international community.

At least 90 people were killed and 400 others injured after an explosives-laden sewage tanker detonated in Kabul’s diplomatic quarter on Wednesday.

The attack, the deadliest in Kabul since 2001, hit the city’s most secure district, which is home to the presidential palace and foreign embassies.

The Daesh Takfiri terrorist group claimed responsibility for the attack.

However, the Afghan intelligence said on Thursday the bombing was plotted and carried out by the Haqqani network, which is a militant group allied with the Taliban. The officials said that the attack was aimed at the Embassy of Germany.

However, the Taliban, which is currently in the midst of its annual “spring offensive,” has denied any involvement in the bombing.

Two days after the huge truck bomb in the heart of Kabul, Afghan riot police reportedly shot dead eight protesters amid clashes during an anti-government demonstration in the capital.

Some 1,000 demonstrators marched on Friday towards the site of Wednesday’s bombing at Zanbaq Square, close to the German Embassy, calling on the Afghan president to step down.

In a Thursday message to his Afghan counterpart Ashraf Ghani, Iranian President Hassan Rouhani expressed the Islamic Republic’s solidarity with Afghanistan in the ongoing campaign against terrorism and extremism.

“In this great tragedy, the Islamic Republic of Iran will stand beside the brotherly Afghan government and nation and keep up… its decisive battle to completely eradicate terror and extremism.”