2024 Guzara attack
Terrorist attack in Afghanistan
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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.[2]
21:00
| 2024 Guzara attack | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Afghan conflict and terrorism in Afghanistan | |
| Location | Imam Zaman Mosque, Guzara, Herat Province, Afghanistan |
| Date | April 29, 2024 21:00 |
| Target | Shia Muslims[1] |
Attack type | Mass shooting |
| Weapon | AK-47 |
| Deaths | 6 |
| Injured | 1 |
| Perpetrator |  Islamic State – Khorasan Province |
| Motive | Anti-Shi'ism |
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,[3] unlike the group it split from, Al-Qaeda, which attempts to maintain positive Shia–Sunni relations.[4]
Attack
On the night of 29 April 2024 at 9 PM, an attacker stormed into the Imam Zaman mosque and opened fired on worshippers inside.[5][6] 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.[7][8] The attacker used an AK-47 to shoot at the worshippers before he fled the scene.[9]
Aftermath
Though no one immediately took responsibility for the attack,[10] a day later the Islamic State – Khorasan Province claimed responsibility through their telegram channel.[11] 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.",[12] the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan,[13] the Iranian embassy in Kabul,[14] and the Taliban with them denouncing and accusing the Islamic State even before they claimed responsibility for the attack.[15]