At least 46 killed in bomb attack at Afghanistan mosque

At least 46 people have been killed and more than 140 wounded after a suicide bomber attacked a mosque in Afghanistan’s northeastern Kunduz province, a state-run news agency has reported.

Photos from the scene show bodies and bloodstains surrounded by rubble inside the mosque.

Rescuers could be seen carrying bodies wrapped in blankets from the building.

The bomb went off during the weekly Friday prayer service at the Gozar-e-Sayed Abad Mosque while the venue was packed with worshippers.

“This afternoon, an explosion took place in a mosque of our Shiite compatriots … as a result of which a number of our compatriots were martyred and wounded,” Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter.

He said Taliban special forces had arrived at the scene and were investigating.

No group immediately claimed responsibility for the blast, but Islamic State militants have regularly attacked Afghanistan’s Shia minority.

The Bakhtar news agency, which is run by the ministry of information, reported that 46 people were killed in the blast and 143 wounded.