Bomb blast kills 4, injures 8 at Kabul mosque

A bomb blast has killed 4 persons, including a mullah, in a Kabul mosque in Afghanistan.

The bomb exploded before the start of Friday prayers.

A spokesperson for the Ministry of Interior Affairs, Tariq Arian, said eight more persons were wounded in the blast,

No group immediately took responsibility for the incident.

The Ministry said it was yet another crime against the sacred places of Afghan people.

Friday’s blast had parallels to one earlier this month at a famous Kabul mosque.

The explosion killed renowned Afghan cleric Mawalawi Ayaz Naizi.

The latest attack took place as the Afghan government and the Taliban are preparing for planned peace talks.

An effort to release about 5,000 Taliban prisoners – a precondition for those talks – is nearly completed.

However, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani, while speaking in an online event initiated by the U.S.-based Atlantic Council, said that threats of the terrorist groups such as Al-Qaeda, Islamic State, and others would not end with peace with the Taliban.

Ghani stressed that a cooperating agreement to fight against terrorism would be necessary.