'Many casualties feared ' in Kabul mosque blast

A huge explosion has ripped through a mosque in the Afghan capital Kabul, police say.

The blast is thought to have occurred during evening prayers, with many casualties feared, though figures are not yet known.

Khalid Zadran, the Taliban's Kabul police spokesman, was quoted by local media as saying there had been an explosion in the city's 17th district.

Reports say the mosque's imam was among the dead.

Security forces have arrived at the scene, he said.

Emergency NGO, a hospital in Kabul, tweeted to say 27 people had been "received at our hospital so far following an explosion in the PD17 area".

"Five children among them, including a seven-year-old," it added.

Last week a prominent pro-Taliban cleric was killed in a suicide bomb blast, also in Kabul. The Islamic State group claimed responsibility for the attack.