Cops confirm casualties after blast near Kabul mosque

Taliban fighters stand guard at the explosion site, near a mosque, in Kabul, Afghanistan, Friday, Sept. 23, 2022. Credit: AP/PTI Photo

An explosion went off near a mosque in Afghanistan's capital of Kabul on Friday, with police confirming casualties.

A column of black smoke rose into the sky and shots rang out several minutes after the blast in the city's diplomatic quarter.

Khalid Zadran, a spokesman for the Kabul police chief, confirmed there were casualties, but could not provide a number for those killed or wounded.

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Interior Minister spokesman Abdul Nafi Takor said the blast went off on the main road near the mosque. He said the cause was under investigation. Takor said police teams were at the site and that an investigation was underway.

Mosques have previously been a target for attacks.

The blast took place near the Wazir Akbar Khan mosque which, in 2020, was struck by a bomb that killed two people, including the mosque's prayer leader.

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