At least six killed after explosions hit Kabul high school

Authorities fear number of casualties may increase as many of those injured are in critical condition

File photo: The blasts occurred in rapid succession inside a school (AP)

At least six people have died and 11 others injured after three explosions rocked a high school in western Kabul on Tuesday.

Authorities in Afghanistan fear the number of casualties may increase as many of those injured are in a critical condition.

The blasts occurred in rapid succession inside the Abdul Rahim Shaheed High School in the Dasht-e-Barchi neighborhood of Kabul.

Explosions also reportedly targetted a second educational centre in the Afghan capital.

According to journalists who saw the two-storey high school after the explosion, walls were splattered with blood while notebooks were burnt and children’s shoes were strewn about.

A suicide bomber is suspected to have blown himself up inside the compound, according to some witnesses. However, an official statement is awaited.

Though the school could accommodate around 1,000 students, it isn’t clear how many students were inside at the time of the explosion. Only students up to class six were being taught as the Taliban recently went back on its promise to provide education to girls.

“Three blasts have taken place ... in a high school, there are some casualties to our Shia people,” said Khalid Zadran, the police spokesperson for the Taliban in Kabul.

Most residents in the neighbourhood are reportedly from the ethnic Hazara community.

The Hazaras are Afghanistan’s third-largest ethnic group and make up around nine per cent of the 36 million population. They have historically been targeted in Sunni-majority Afghanistan for belonging to the minority Shia sect of Islam.

However, there has been no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

Additional reporting by agencies