Mosque Blast Kills 18, Including Senior Cleric, in Afghanistan's Herat

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the blast.

An explosion tore through a crowded mosque in western Afghanistan on Friday, killing at least 18 people.

(Photo: ANI / Twitter)

An explosion in a crowded mosque in western Afghanistan, on Friday, 2 September, killed at least 18 people, including a prominent cleric, Taliban officials and a local medic told the Associated Press. At least 21 people were hurt.

The blast reportedly went off in the Guzargah Mosque in the western city of Herat during Friday noon prayers, the highlight of the Muslim religious week when places of worship are particularly crowded.

The cleric who died in the blast was Mujib-ul Rahman Ansari, a Taliban supporter known for his criticism of the country’s Western-backed governments over the past two decades, according to the report.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for Friday’s blast.

(With inputs from the Associated Press.)