Second deadly blast within a week on Shiite mosque leaves several dead, wounded

An explosion struck a Shiite mosque in Afghanistan’s southern province of Kandahar, leaving several people dead and wounded, the Taliban said on Friday.

The Ministry of Interior Affairs spokesperson Qari Saeed Khosty said Taliban special forces are at the scene to find out the cause of the blast and “punish the perpetrators”.

There was no official word yet as to the exact number of casualties and no group has claimed responsibility for the blast.

Pictures circling on social media showed scenes of carnage in the mosque in the city of Kandahar, where victims were sprawling on the ground.

This is the second deadly blast within a week on Shiite religious sites in Afghanistan.

A suicide bomber at a Shiite mosque one week ago killed more than 40 worshippers. The Islamic State extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack.

In mid-August, the Taliban took power in Afghanistan after U.S.-led international forces pulled out. 

The army and police disbanded and government officials fled, leaving a security vacuum in places.

The Taliban are enemies of the Islamic State and have been fighting with the Sunni terrorist group since it emerged in Afghanistan in early 2015.

(NAN)