Senior Shia cleric rebukes recent Ashura bomb blasts

(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) -  Head of the World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought, Ayatollah Muhammad Ali Taskhiri has condemned the bomb blasts in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif that killed and injured many civilians.

The Grand Ayatollah condemned, in a statement, such heinous acts in the strongest terms and extended his deepest condolences to the families of the deceased and wounded.

At least 54 Afghans were killed in two separate explosions in Kabul and Mazar-i-Sharif as masses of Shia Muslims in the country were participating in mourning rituals commemorating the martyrdom anniversary of grandson of Islam's Prophet Mohammad (PBUH) and third Shia Imam (apostle), Imam Hossein (PBUH).

“These sacrilegious acts are perpetrated by the enemies of Islam who targeted the proximity of Muslims and put their unity in danger,” Ayatollah Taskhiri underscored.

The attacks come a day after 1.000 leaders from over 100 countries and international organizations met in the German city of Bonn to vow their continued support for the security and development of Afghanistan.

Millions of Shia Muslims across the globe have been holding mourning rituals to honor Imam Hossein (PBUH) and 72 of his committed followers and relatives that were brutally killed over 1.300 years ago at Karbala (in today's Iraq) by a despotic Muslim caliph (ruler) named Yazid, who was anti-Islamic in practice. Yazid mobilized thousand of his forces to kill the Prophet's grandson because he refused to recognize the legitimacy of his rule.

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