India on Sunday strongly condemned the terrorist attack on a school in Afghanistan's Kabul and said the incident demonstrates "the urgent need for dismantling terrorist sanctuaries and for a comprehensive nationwide ceasefire to make peace progress meaningful and sustainable".
In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said India has always supported the education of Afghan youth and remains committed to the progress and development of the neighbouring country.
"We strongly condemn the terrorist attack on Sayed al-Shuhada Girls school in Kabul yesterday, which killed more than 50 innocent girl students during the holy month of Ramadan. Our thoughts and prayers are with the families and friends of the young girls who lost their lives in this barbarous attack," read the MEA statement.
"Targetting young girl students, makes this an attack on the future of Afghanistan. The perpetrators clearly seek to destroy the painstaking and hard-won achievements that the Afghans have put in place over the last two decades," the statement added.
Death toll soars to 50 in school bombing:
The death toll from a car bombing near a school in Kabul followed by two mine blasts has increased to 50, the Afghan Interior Ministry said on Sunday.
At least 100 more people were wounded in the bombing that took place on Saturday near a school in Dasht-e-Barchi, a Shia-Hazara-populated area of the Afghan capital, dpa news agency quoted Ministry spokesman Tariq Arian as saying.
Most of the victims were civilians, mainly students, who were leaving the school when the bombings took place.
The number of victims might still increase as ambulances were transferring wounded and dead people until late Saturday night, Arian added.
No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet. However, the government has blamed the Taliban.
(With IANS inputs)
