34 KILLED IN AFGHAN MOSQUE BLAST

KABUL: A suicide attack on a Shia mosque on Tuesday killed at least 34 people, Afghan officials and media reports said. The blast took place in a mosque in western Herat, on the border with Iran. Dr Mohammed Rafique Shehrzad said 20 bodies were brought to his Main Hospital in Herat city, the capital of western Herat province tonight, soon after the blast shattered the late evening. Shias are a minority in Afghanistan and have been threatened by the Islamic State affiliate that operates in the country’s east. No one immediately took responsibility for the attack on the Jawadia Mosque. The blast struck the entrance to the mosque. “There has been an explosion at the gate of Jawadya mosque in Herat city, possible caused by a car bomb,” interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said.