KABUL, Afghanistan – A suicide bomb blast in a Kabul supermarket last week shattered a couple months of peace in the capital and created a wave of regret across Afghanistan.
The Jan. 28 explosion occurred after a suicide bomber entered the Finest supermarket n the diplomatic area of Wazir Akbar Khan. He supposedly was aiming to kill a foreign security firm official.
But instead, the blast killed 14 people, including an entire family, and critically injured a dozen others.
Taking place shortly after Friday prayers, a time when most Kabul residents enjoy their weekend holiday outside their homes, the bomb went off just as Dr. Massoud Yama and his wife, human rights advocate Hamida Barmak, entered the market with their four children, including a 2-year-old son.
No one in the family survived.
This tragedy echoed all across Afghanistan and people have felt a high sense of regret. Kabul residents talked about them all week and the telecast of their funerals put tears into the eyes of the wide audience.
President Hamid Karzai strongly condemned the attack, which the Taliban took credit for.
The closed doors of the Finest supermarket in the roundabout near the British embassy serve as a daily remind of the fear and gloom for the thousands of drivers passing by each day.
All that remains of the victims is another appalling story lodged in the hearts and minds of the Afghan people who have experienced 30 years of conflict.
Edrees Kakar is a Senior Reporter in Afghanistan for Youth Journalism International. Haris Hashmie is a photographer for Youth Journalism International.
