At least 19 people were killed and nearly 30 others wounded in a suicide attack on an education center in the Afghan capital of Kabul on Friday, with most victims believed to be female students.
According to Kabul police spokesperson Khalid Zadran, the blast occurred inside the center in the Dashti Barchi district of western Kabul, a predominantly Shia Muslim area and home to the Hazara minority.
Since the Taliban took over, Afghanistan has increasingly descended into chaos. The looming humanitarian catastrophe and economic collapse provide the perfect breeding ground for terrorist groups, not only posing a growing threat to innocent Afghans but also targeting the international community. To prevent further destabilization, a UN peacekeeping force is required to promote a peace process among all Afghans.
It's shortsighted only to blame the Taliban for escalating violence when the country was already descending into anarchy, and the Islamic State was on the rise before the US withdrawal. This was also fostered because Washington never developed a coherent political and economic strategy for Afghanistan. With international aid funds now being cut and the US freezing billions in Afghan assets, the situation will only worsen due to Western failures.