Tehran Azadi Tower lit up with colors of Afghan flag in honor of Kabul school victims

In solidarity with Afghanistan and the victims of the recent brutal terrorist attack targeting a girls' school in Kabul, the iconic Azadi Tower in the Iranian capital, Tehran, has been lit up with the colors of the Afghan flag.

The screening of the Afghan flag and images with the hashtag “#Where_are_you_the_dear_one_of_the_father” were part of the video mapping that was performed on Tehran's Azadi Tower on Tuesday night.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif said in a post on his Twitter account on Wednesday that a lighting ceremony had been performed at Azadi Tower to honor the victims of the deadly school attack in Kabul, who were mostly female students, and to express sympathy with their families and the Afghan nation.

“Last night, Tehran’s Azadi Tower mourned the victims of Sayed-ul-Shuhada School in Kabul along with Afghanistan’s people,” Zarif wrote in his tweet.

On Saturday afternoon, an explosion occurred near Kabul’s Sayed-ul-Shuhada Girls High School in the Shia majority neighborhood of Dasht-e-Barchi in western Kabul.

As many as 63 people, mostly school girls, were killed and 150 more were wounded in the blast.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said the Taliban militant group was responsible for the attack.

The Taliban, however, did not claim responsibility.

UNSC condemns deadly school attack in Kabul

Meanwhile, members of the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) have strongly condemned the “atrocious and cowardly terrorist attack” in Kabul, stressing the need to hold “perpetrators, organizers, financiers and sponsors of these reprehensible acts of terrorism accountable and bring them to justice.”

“The members of the Security Council expressed their deepest sympathy and condolences to the families of the victims and to the Government of Afghanistan and they wished a speedy and full recovery to those who were injured,” the Council said in a statement on Monday night.

The UNSC also expressed deep concern over the significant number of attacks on schools and education facilities in Afghanistan in recent months, stressing the importance of sustained efforts to end the ongoing violence and protect civilians in the war-ravaged country.

It further reaffirmed that “terrorism in all its forms and manifestations constitutes one of the most serious threats to international peace and security,” urging all countries to combat terrorist threats and to cooperate actively with the government in Kabul and all other relevant authorities to bring the perpetrators of terrorist acts to justice.

225 civilians killed during Ramadan: Afghan govt.

Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry has announced that the Taliban militant group has carried out dozens of attacks since the beginning of the holy month of Ramadan. 

The ministry said in a statement that the Taliban had been responsible for 215 bombings during the fasting month, which started on April 13, adding that 500 more civilians had been wounded in the assaults.

The Taliban have denied involvement in the acts of terror and civilian deaths.

On Monday, the militant group declared a three-day ceasefire across Afghanistan in observance of the Eid al-Fitr holiday.

The development came two days after the latest massacre in Kabul.

Ghani urged the Taliban to announce a permanent truce later in the day.

Khan Agha Rezaee, head of the internal security committee of the Afghan parliament, also said, “Civilian casualties were high during Ramadan and there was a need for ceasefire. We hope the ceasefire continues so that we can move towards the talks.”

Figures obtained by TOLO News from sources show that civilian deaths have increased by 20 percent during the month of Ramadan, compared to a month before.

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