The 31 May 2017 Kabul truck bombing was the deadliest terror attack in the city's history, killing over 150 civilians in a heavily fortified diplomatic quarter.
Key Facts
- Deaths
- Over 150
- Injured
- 413 people
- Time of attack
- 08:25 local time (03:55 GMT)
- Crater width
- 4.5 meters
- Crater depth
- 3 meters
- Suspected perpetrator
- Haqqani Network (per NDS)
By the Numbers
Location
Cause → Event → Consequence
Afghanistan's intelligence agency NDS attributed the attack to the Haqqani Network, an Islamist militant group. The Afghan Taliban were also suspected, though they denied involvement and condemned the bombing. The attack targeted the diplomatic quarter, one of Kabul's most fortified zones, suggesting sophisticated planning to breach multiple security checkpoints.
On 31 May 2017, a truck bomb detonated at a crowded intersection near the German embassy in Kabul during rush hour. The explosion killed over 150 people and injured 413, the majority of them civilians. It created a crater roughly 4.5 meters wide and 3 meters deep and caused significant damage to several embassy buildings nearby.
The bombing was recorded as the single deadliest terror attack in Kabul's history up to that point. The scale of civilian casualties and the breach of a heavily fortified diplomatic zone intensified international concern over security conditions in Afghanistan and drew condemnation from governments and international organizations worldwide.