A suicide bomber killed as many as 37 and wounded dozens more today when he detonated among worshippers at northern mosque on the first day of a Muslim holiday.
The blast tore through a crowd gathered outside the packed mosque as worshippers marked the beginning of the Eid al-Adha festival.
Many police officers were reported to be among the dead and several senior local officials were also present at the blast in Maymana, capital ofAfghanistan’s Faryab province.
There was no claim of responsibility for the bombing at the Eid Gah mosque and it was not immediately clear if anyone in particular had been targeted.
Faryab is not a stronghold of the Taliban, but it has seen increasing violence in recent years and this week has seen bloody clashes between the security forces and insurgents.
The Taliban’s shadow governor for Faryab was killed along with 24 of his fighters on Wednesday after a prolonged battle which also killed five policemen, the governor has said.
Jawid Didar, spokesman for the Faryab governor, told the Associated Press news agency that provincial officials, including the governor and the police chief, were inside the building when the bomber set off his explosives outside.
Khaled, a doctor at the mosque at the time of the blast, said: “There was blood and dead bodies everywhere. It was a massacre.”
Abdul Satar Barez, deputy provincial governor, told the AFP agency the blast occurred just as worshippers had finished prayer and were congratulating each other.
He said: “Suddenly a big explosion took place and the area was full of dust and smoke and body parts of police and civilians were all over the place. It was a very powerful explosion.”
Mr Barez put the casualty toll at 32 dead, including 17 civilians and 15 police and intelligence agents. The provincial police chief, Abdul Khaliq Aqsai, was among the wounded.
Another official put the death toll at 37.