China Calls on Taliban for Increased Protection After Kabul Attack

Tue Jan 20 2026 17:25:21 GMT+0200 (Eastern European Standard Time)

Following a deadly explosion at a Chinese-run restaurant in Kabul, Beijing demands the Taliban enhance security measures for its citizens in Afghanistan.

In light of a recent bombing at a Chinese restaurant in Kabul that resulted in multiple fatalities, including a Chinese national, China has urged the Taliban government to ensure the safety of its citizens. The attack, attributed to the Islamic State, has raised concerns about security in Afghanistan, prompting Beijing to make formal demands for protective measures.

Beijing has demanded the Taliban government protect its citizens after an explosion at a Chinese-run restaurant in the Afghan capital Kabul killed at least seven people.

Six Afghans and one Chinese national were killed, and several more injured, in the blast at a Chinese restaurant in a heavily-guarded part of the city centre on Monday, officials told the media.

The jihadist group Islamic State (IS) claimed responsibility for the attack, although police in Kabul stated the nature of the explosion is unknown so far and is being investigated.

China has urged its citizens not to travel to Afghanistan since the Taliban seized control in 2021, with numerous bombings attributed to IS since then.

Speaking on Tuesday, Beijing's foreign ministry spokesman Guo Jiakun said China had made urgent representations with the Afghan side, demanding that the Afghan side spare no effort to treat the injured and take effective measures to protect the safety of Chinese citizens.

The explosion occurred near the kitchen of the Chinese Noodle restaurant, located under a guesthouse in the capital's Shahr-e-Naw area, according to city police spokesman Khalid Zadran.

Dejan Panic, Afghanistan director of humanitarian group EMERGENCY, indicated that they received 20 people at their hospital, with seven dead on arrival. Among the injured were four women and a child.

Footage from the aftermath of the explosion showed a large hole in the side of the building, and eyewitnesses reported that a car outside the restaurant was completely destroyed, with locals helping to rush critically injured individuals to the hospital.

The restaurant mainly served Chinese Muslims and was run by a Muslim man from China's Xinjiang region, along with his wife and Afghan business partner.

IS's local branch stated that China was "on the list" of its targets, particularly due to what it described as increasing crimes against oppressed Uyghur Muslims.

China has faced international scrutiny and allegations of human rights abuses against the Uyghur population and other Muslim ethnic groups in Xinjiang, claims that the Chinese government has consistently denied.

IS has a history of violence in Afghanistan, including a previous attack on a Chinese-owned hotel in Kabul in 2022.

Recently, Chinese nationals near the Tajikistan border were also targeted, with Beijing advising its citizens to leave the Tajik-Afghan border area.