Girls targeted in bomb carnage at school that left 55 dead in Afghan capital, Kabul

• At least 55 people have been killed in a bomb attack on a school in Kabul, Afghanistan on Saturday.
• The majority of the victims were female students aged between 11 and 15 years old.
• No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

At least 55 people have died and 150 more were injured after multiple bombs went off outside a high school in west Kabul, Afghanistan on Saturday, according to officials.

Most of the casualties were female students aged between 11 and 15 years old, Reuters reported.

The attack unfolded when a car bomb was detonated in front of Sayed Ul-Shuhada high school at 4 pm on Saturday. As students rushed out, two more bombs were set off, the New York Times reported. The school is located in the Shia-majority neighborhood of Dasht-i-Barchi.

Najiba Arian, a spokeswoman for the Ministry of Education, told Reuters that girls and boys study in three shifts at the school, the second of which is for female students. The bomb is thought to have gone off during this shift.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

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Videos and images on social media show blood-stained backpacks and books on the street as a crowd of people gathered in front of the school.

Nearby hospitals were flooded with injured students and distressed relatives desperately searching for their children, an eyewitness told Reuters. Dozens of people also lined up to donate blood.

Journalists working for the Associated Press reported seeing at least 20 dead bodies in the hallways of one hospital.

"I do not know what country we are in ... We want peace and security," one grieving relative told Reuters.

Afghan President Ashraf Ghani issued a statement blaming the Taliban for the attack although he offered no proof.

A spokesperson for the Taliban, Zabihullah Mujahid, condemned the incident and denied the group was involved, Reuters reported.

Mujahid said only the Islamic State could be behind the attack. ISIS previously claimed attacks in the same area last year.

-Malala (@Malala) May 9, 2021

Afghan officials have said the Taliban has stepped up its attacks across the country ever since President Joe Biden announced plans last month to pull out all US troops by September 11.

Human rights activist Malala Yousafzai, who advocates for female education, tweeted:" The escalation of terrorism is alarming for peace and democracy in Afghanistan. World leaders must unite to safeguard school-children."