Authorities reported at least 20 dead and 30 injured after powerful blasts at the largest military hospital in Afghanistan on Tuesday, followed by gunfire at Kabul's Daoud Khan Military hospital entrance.
The facility was considered the biggest in the region, housing 400 beds, and is located near the capital's former diplomatic quarter. In a statement, Taliban officials later revealed that special forces arrived at the scene after the explosions.
ISIS Attack on Taliban
At a nearby Wazir Akbar Khan civilian hospital, a doctor who was treating incoming patients said at least 15 injured people were admitted into the facility's emergency ward. Many of the victims were in critical condition. Additionally, the Italian humanitarian NGO "Emergency" posted on Twitter that nine people were injured and quickly brought to its hospital in Kabul.
Video footage obtained by CNN and posted on Facebook showed three armed men inside the hospital compound near the building entrance after two blasts were felt in the area. The recording was filmed from inside the hospital by a man who said on the social media platform that he became "trapped" inside a room and was hiding from the assailants. A fourth man appeared to be laying on the floor later on in the video, CNN reported.
The attack is believed to have been conducted by the Islamic State and included at least one suicide bomber. A Taliban spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, said that the attack involved several members of ISIS and had a car full of explosives that were found outside the hospital and exploded, wounding dozens of civilians. It was also reported that several Taliban fighters died in the clash while others were injured in the ensuing gun battle.
Hours after the attack, the Islamic State Khorasan, known as ISIS-K, which is an affiliate of ISIS, took responsibility for the incident. A senior commander responsible for the Taliban's Kabul corps and one of the first members of the insurrection group to enter the presidential palace of Afghanistan, identified as Mawlawi Hamdullah Rahmani, was among the fatalities.
One doctor at the hospital who wished to remain anonymous for his safety revealed that the gunmen had entered a ward that was treating wounded Taliban fighters and shot them dead in their beds. Another medical professional said he could still hear gunfire within the building early Tuesday afternoon, the New York Times reported.
Brutal Wedding Shootout
The incident comes after three armed men, who claimed to be members of the Taliban, shot three people dead at a wedding in the region. The insurrection group members said the attack was made because the music was being played at the reception.
A spokesman for the Taliban's government said that two of the three gunmen were arrested after the Friday attack. However, they denied that the men were acting on behalf of the Islamist movement.
"Last night, at the wedding of Haji Malang Jan in Shamspur Mar Ghundi village of Nangarhar, three people who introduced themselves as Taliban entered the proceedings and [asked] that the music stop playing," Mujahid said on Saturday, the New York Post reported.
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