DHAKA: A suicide bomber has blown himself up inside a Shia mosque in the Afghan capital Kabul, killing at least 27 people on Monday (November 21).

The explosion triggered by a suicide bomber happened in Baqer-ul-uloom mosque in the Darul Aman area, according to the interior ministry.

Kabul police chief Abdul Rahman Rahimi told Al Jazeera that several people were also wounded. Police said more deaths were feared.

Several police vehicles raced from the scene, ferrying the wounded to hospital.

Worshippers were gathering to mark the Shia ceremony of Arbaeen, which comes 40 days after the major festival of Ashura.

Ashura commemorates the death of Imam Hussein, grandson of the Prophet Muhammad who was assassinated in the year 680. His fate laid the foundation for the faith practised by the Shia community, a minority in mainly Sunni Muslim Afghanistan.

Arbaeen marks the end of the mourning period over his death.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the blast.

BDST: 1756 HRS, NOV 21, 2016
BD