Prominent Imam among 18 killed in Herat mosque blast (VIDEO)

Herat: A total of 18 people have been confirmed dead and 23 others were injured as a blast ripped through a mosque in Herat city, capital of Afghanistan's western Herat province on Friday, a local official said.

"A total of 18 persons including prominent cleric Mawlawi Mujib Rahman Ansari and his brother Habib Rahman Ansari were killed and 23 others injured in a blast outside the Gazar Gah mosque in Herat city today," the provincial administration spokesman Mawlawi Hamidullah Matawakil told reporters.

In the meantime, Herat police spokesman Mahmoud Shah Rasouli told reporters that the late Mawlawi Ansari was going towards the mosque to offer on Friday congregation when a suicide bomber blew himself up, killing himself and several others including the cleric on the spot and injuring several others.

No group or individual has claimed responsibility for the blast, according to local media.

Rasouli blamed the "enemies" for the deadly attack but did not name any particular group. (UNI)