2024 Guzara attack | |
---|---|
Part of the Afghan conflict and terrorism in Afghanistan | |
Location | Imam Zaman Mosque, Guzara, Herat Province, Afghanistan |
Date | April 29, 2024 (2024-04-29) 21:00 |
Target | Shia Muslims |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
Weapon | AK-47 |
Deaths | 6 |
Injured | 1 |
Perpetrator | Islamic State – Khorasan Province |
Motive | Anti-Shi'ism |
The 2024 Guzara Attack was a terrorist attack against Shia Muslims in Guzara, Herat Province, Afghanistan on April 29, 2024, by the Islamic State – Khorasan Province.
Background
The Islamic State as a whole has made its ideology of Islamic Statism to Sunni supremacy and Takfirism against Shia Muslims with attacks like the Camp Speicher massacre, unlike the group it split from, Al-Qaeda, which attempts to maintain positive Shia–Sunni relations.
Attack
On the night of April 29, 2024 at 9 PM, an attacker stormed into the Imam Zaman mosque and opened fired on worshippers inside. The attacker sprayed bullets randomly at worshippers, killing six, including a 3-year-old child and the Imam who was leading the prayers, and injuring one. The attacker used an AK-47 to shoot at the worshippers before he fled the scene.
Aftermath
Though no one immediately took responsibility for the attack, a day later the Islamic State – Khorasan Province claimed responsibility through their telegram channel. Many organizations and people condemning the attack including the former president of Afghanistan, Hamid Karzai, said on a post on X: "I strongly condemn the attack on the Imam Zaman Mosque, I consider this terrorist act against all religious and human standards.", the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, the Iranian embassy in Kabul, and the Taliban with them denouncing and accusing the Islamic State even before they claimed responsibility for the attack.
References
- "6 killed in an attack on Afghan mosque". Al Bawaba. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "A gunman kills 6 worshippers inside a Shiite mosque in western Afghanistan, the Taliban say". Associated Press. Islamabad. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- Muqarrar Fi Al-Tawhid Li Al-Mu‘askarat (Standard Text for Islamic Creed for Military Camps) (1436/2015). Al-Dawlah Al-Islamiyah Hai’ah Al-Buhuth Wa Al-Ifta; cited in Kadivar, Jamileh (May 18, 2020). "Exploring Takfir, Its Origins and Contemporary Use: The Case of Takfiri Approach in Daesh's Media" (PDF). Contemporary Review of the Middle East. 7 (3): 259–285. doi:10.1177/2347798920921706. S2CID 219460446.
- "Iran, Al-Qaeda and the Taliban; Close Relations between Shiite and Sunni Fundamentalists: A Strategic Move or a Matter of Expediency?". aissonline.org. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Gunman kills at least six in attack on mosque in Afghanistan's Herat". Al Jazeera English. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "A gunman kills 6 worshippers inside a Shiite mosque in western Afghanistan, the Taliban say". The Washington Times. 2024-04-30. ISSN 0732-8494. OCLC 8472624. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Afghanistan: Shooting attack on mosque kills 6". Deutsche Welle. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- Gul, Ayaz (2024-04-30). "Gun attack on Shiite mosque in western Afghanistan kills 6 worshippers". Voice of America. Islamabad. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- Sharma, Shweta (2024-05-01). "Isis claims responsibility for deadly Afghanistan mosque shooting". The Independent. ISSN 1741-9743. OCLC 185201487. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "A gunman kills 6 worshippers inside a Shiite mosque in western Afghanistan: Taliban". The Indian Express. 2024-04-30. OCLC 70274541. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "A Gunman Kills 6 Worshippers Inside A Shiite Mosque In Western Afghanistan, The Taliban Say". Outlook. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Afghanistan: Gunman kills 6 worshippers inside a Shiite mosque, the Taliban say". Le Monde. 2024-05-01. ISSN 1950-6244. OCLC 833476932. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Gunman kills 6 worshippers inside Shiite mosque". SunStar. 2024-04-30. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Gunman kills at least six in attack on mosque in Afghanistan's Herat". The Frontier Post. Herat. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
- "Gunman kills 6 in attack on Afghan mosque". Pakistan Observer. 2024-05-01. Retrieved 2024-11-13.
Categories:
- 21st century in Herat Province
- Crime in Herat Province
- 2024 mass shootings in Asia
- 2024 murders in Afghanistan
- 21st-century mass murder in Afghanistan
- Islamic State–Taliban conflict
- April 2024 crimes in Asia
- Herat Province
- ISIL terrorist incidents in Afghanistan
- Islamic State – Khorasan Province
- Islamic terrorist incidents in 2024
- Mass murder in 2024
- Mosque shootings
- Mass shootings in Afghanistan
- Terrorist incidents in Afghanistan in 2024
- Attacks on Shiite mosques in Afghanistan
- Persecution of Shias by the Islamic State