UPDATE - Blast inside mosque kills 4 in Afghanistan

UPDATES WITH TALIBAN’S DENIAL, CONDEMNATIONS; ADDS BACKGROUND

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan (AA) - A blast inside a mosque during Friday prayer killed at least four people in the Afghan capital Kabul, an official confirmed.

Tariq Aryan, spokesman for the Interior Ministry, told Anadolu Agency that the incident took place in the posh Karta-4 neighborhood of the city. He confirmed that at least four people, including the imam, were killed in the attack.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.

The Taliban insurgents were quick to distance themselves from this attack.

In a social media post, the group’s spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahed, said this attack is part of conspiracy by the “enemy” at a crucial time when peace talks are advancing.

The attack has been widely condemned.

The Afghan government dubbed the attack as “inhuman” and “against the principles of Islam.”

Stefano Pontecorvo, NATO’s senior civilian representative in Kabul, stressed the perpetrators must be brought to justice.

“As we face a historical opportunity for peace, spoilers can’t be allowed to disrupt it. We stand with #Afghanistan in the fight against terror,” he said on Twitter.

On June 2, a strong Daesh-claimed blast inside a mosque rocked presumably the safest diplomatic enclave of Kabul killing the mosque's famous prayer leader Mawlana Ayaz Niazi and another man, while injuring eight people.

Distancing themselves from that incident, the Taliban insurgents dubbed it as a “massive crime.”