KABUL -- Islamic State-Khorasan Province (IS-K), the regional affiliate of the extremist group Islamic State, has claimed responsibility for a blast at a Chinese hotel restaurant in central Kabul that killed at least seven people and wounded more than a dozen others.
Taliban spokesman Khalid Zadran said the January 19 explosion happened in the kitchen of a restaurant that is frequented by Chinese nationals. Officials did not immediately provide exact figures for the number of people wounded.
"A Chinese Muslim...and six Afghans were killed. Several others were wounded," Zadran said in a statement.
The Emergency Hospital in Kabul said in a statement that around 20 people were brought in from the blast site, seven of whom died before or shortly after arrival. Thirteen others were wounded, including four women and one child.
SEE ALSO: Taliban Gold Rush Turns Deadly, Putting Spotlight On Chinese-Backed MiningThe explosion, which was promptly claimed by IS-K in a statement as a suicide mission targeting Chinese citizens, is the latest in a string of attacks in Afghanistan and along its borders in recent months that has seen Chinese nationals killed or injured.
"The Islamic State in Afghanistan has placed Chinese nationals on its list of targets, especially in light of the escalating crimes committed by the Chinese government against the oppressed Uyghur Muslims," the IS group statement said.
Since Beijing accelerated a crackdown in its northwestern Xinjiang Province in 2017, more than 1 million Uyghurs, Kazakhs, Kyrgyz, and other Muslim minorities have been put into mass detention camps.
China has been accused of systemic human rights violations in Xinjiang, and in 2022, a UN report found China was committing "serious human rights violations" in Xinjiang that may amount to crimes against humanity.
SEE ALSO: Pakistan Creates Special Security Unit To Protect Chinese Citizens Amid A Rise In AttacksChina has denied any human rights abuses in the region and says its policies in Xinjiang are designed to counter extremism and terrorism.
In response to the January 19 attack, the Chinese Embassy in Kabul issued a statement urging Chinese citizens to avoid travel to Afghanistan due to ongoing security risks.
The embassy also emphasized that Chinese citizens should strengthen personal safety measures and avoid crowded locations, such as restaurants, markets, and places of worship.
The embassy's warning comes amid broader concerns over security in the region.
Mounting tensions and attacks along Afghanistan's northeastern border with Tajikistan have worsened the security situation. In November, two separate attacks killed five Chinese nationals working at a mining operation across the border in Tajikistan.
SEE ALSO: Who Killed The Chinese Workers? Questions Persist Weeks After Afghan-Tajik Border AttacksChinese business visitors have flocked to Afghanistan since the Taliban government took power in 2021 for the second time as Beijing has forged an at times awkward partnership with Kabul in an attempt to stabilize the situation in its neighbor with whom it shares a 92-kilometer border.
The following year, the Islamic State group claimed a deadly attack on a Kabul hotel popular with Chinese guests.
IS-K's claim of responsibility follows previous attacks by the group, including a deadly assault on accommodation used by Chinese citizens in Kabul in December 2022.
Taliban officials have vowed to restore security to the country and are courting foreign investors to secure crucial revenue streams as foreign aid funding dries up.