At least 19 dead after blast hits Kabul education centre

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Police in Kabul say a suicide attack at an education centre in the Afghan capital has killed at least 19 people and injured many others.

The blast took place at the Kaaj education centre in the Dasht-e-Barchi area in the west of the city.

Students had been sitting a practice university exam, officials from the centre said.

Many of those living in the area are from the Hazara minority, which has been targeted in past attacks.

No group has yet said they are behind the blast.

But Shiite Hazaras have long faced persecution from both the Taliban as well as its rival the Islamic State group (IS).

On Friday, the Taliban's interior ministry spokesman said security teams were at the site and condemned the attack.

Abdul Nafy Takor said attacking civilian targets "proves the enemy's inhuman cruelty and lack of moral standards."

The Taliban returned to power in Afghanistan last August and the group says it is attempting to restore stability.

However attacks by IS have continued.

The Dasht-e-Barchi area has been the location of several attacks, some of which have targeted schools and hospitals.

Last year - before the Taliban returned to power - a bomb attack on a girls school in Dasht-e-Barchi killed at least 85 people, mainly students, and wounded hundreds more.

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