Armed men broke into a maternity hospital in the western part of the Afghan capital, Kabul, sparking an hour-long shootout with police and killing 16 people, including two newborn babies, their mothers and an unknown number. of nurses.
The Interior Ministry released images showing young children lying dead inside the hospital and a dead woman lying on the floor, still holding her surviving baby.
It is unknown why the hospital, where the medical charity Doctors Without Borders (MSF) runs a maternity hospital, was attacked.
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Authorities said at least three assailants in police uniforms entered the hospital, throwing grenades and shooting. Security forces had previously sealed off the area.
The neighborhood is home to many members of the Hazara community of Afghanistan, a majority Shia Muslim minority who have been attacked by Daesh in the past, including at a ceremony in Kabul commemorating the death of the one of its leaders in March.
Also on Tuesday, at least 24 people were killed and dozens more were injured in a suicide bombing claimed by Islamic State during a funeral in eastern East 39; Afghanistan.
The Islamic State did not mention the attack on motherhood when it claimed responsibility for the attack on the funeral.
President Ashraf Ghani has said that Afghan security forces will go on the offensive against the Taliban and other militant groups after the attacks. The Taliban, who denied being involved in any of the attacks, responded that they were "fully prepared" to repel any military offensive.