Trump calls for 'decisive action' after Kabul ambulance bomb killings

US President Donald Trump called for 'decisive action' after at least 95 were killed in an ambulance bomb blast, which is being described in Afghanistan's deadliest militant attack this year.

MENA

2 min read

The New Arab & agencies

27 January, 2018

The Taliban claimed the attack on the Afghan capital [Anadolu]

US President Donald Trump has vowed revenge after the after an ambulance bomb was detonated in a densely packed area of Kabul, killing at least 95 people and wounding 158 people.

Saturday's bombing was the deadliest insurgent attack on the country so far this year and has led to Trump to call for "decisive action" against the attackers.

"The Taliban's cruelty will not prevail," he said in a statement, blaming the militant group for the attack.

"This murderous attack renews our resolve and that of our Afghan partners. Now, all countries should take decisive action against the Taliban and the terrorist infrastructure that supports them."

The blast, which the Taliban claimed, shattered windows in a government and diplomatic district of Kabul, as insurgents continue to target the Afghan capital with shootings and bombings.

An Afghan MP told Reuters that an ambulance approached a security checkpoint as the bomb was detonated.

Wahid Majroh, a spokesman for the public health ministry, said that the toll might still rise, because reports from the hospital show many of the wounded appear to be in critical condition.

Italian NGO Emergency said in the early stages of the attack that more than 50 people were rushed to hospital in what has been described as a "massacre".

Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said the Taliban's use of an ambulance as a weapon to target civilians "represents inhumane disregard for the people of Afghanistan".

The bomb blast comes a week after a Taliban attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, which left more than 40 people dead, including many foreigners.

There have been an uptick in attacks on the capital over the past year by the Taliban and an Islamic State group affiliate.