Attacks Against Places Of Worship In Armed Conflict: Afghanistan, 2016-2017.pdf

Since 1 January 2016, UNAMA documented 51 incidents of attacks against places of worship and persons exercising their right to religious worship, observance, and practice and targeted killings, abductions, and intimidation of religious scholars and religious leaders, mainly by Anti-Government Elements. These incidents resulted in 850 civilian casualties (273 killed and 577 injured), nearly double the number of civilian casualties recorded in such attacks during the entire previous seven-year period from 2009 to 2015. Most recently, on 20 October 2017, a suicide attacker lobbed a grenade into the women’s section of an Imam-e-Zaman Shi’a mosque in Kabul city and detonated his suicide vest in the second row of worshippers, killing 57 worshippers and injuring another 55, including women and children.

Attacks against places of worship since 1 January 2016 caused 737 civilian casualties (242 killed, 495 injured), the vast majority Shi’a Muslim worshippers killed or injured by suicide attacks conducted by Anti-Government Elements, particularly ISKP. Prior to 2016, UNAMA rarely recorded Anti-Government Elements undertaking deliberate attacks against Shi’a Muslims. Between 1 January 2009 and 31 December 2015, UNAMA documented five incidents against Shi’a Muslims, although the perpetrators and motives behind most incidents were not clearly determined and there were no clear public claims of responsibility.

Since 1 January 2016, UNAMA documented 12 incidents targeting Shi’a Muslim worshippers at places of worship, resulting in 689 civilian casualties (230 deaths and 459 injuries), raising grave concerns regarding the right to freedom of religion or belief and the protection of religious minorities. ISKP publicly claimed eight of the 12 attacks through the Islamic State-affiliated Al Amaq news agency. Four of the 12 incidents took place in 2016 and eight in the first 10 months of 2017.

UNAMA also recorded one additional sectarian incident targeting persons other than Shi’a Muslims in 2017 – it occurred in Nangarhar province when Taliban opened fire on worshippers in a mosque in an ISKP controlled area, killing three civilians, allegedly on grounds of their being ‘Wahhabi’. The remaining attacks targeting places of worship were not considered to have a sectarian basis.