At least 21 killed, dozen injured in an explosion at a mosque in Kabul, police chief says

• At least 21 were killed in an explosion in Kabul on Wednesday, Kabul police told media on Thursday.
• The police spokesperson Khalid Zadran said that at least 33 were wounded, per Reuters.

At least 21 were killed when a major explosion occurred at a mosque in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Wednesday during evening prayers, Kabul police told media outlets.

Khalid Zadran, the Kabul police spokesperson, said that at least 33 were wounded, Reuters reported.

Emergency, an Italian NGO that operates in Kabul, tweeted on Wednesday that at least 27 people were wounded, including five children.

It's unclear who was behind the explosion, which comes roughly one year after the US military pulled its forces out of Afghanistan.

A Taliban spokesperson condemned the attack, telling CNN that perpetrators of "such crimes will be caught and punished for their heinous deeds."

An unnamed Taliban intelligence official told Reuters the explosion occurred in the Khair Khana area of Kabul. The official also said the Imam of the mosque was among those killed.

Stefano Sozza, Emergency's Country Director in Afghanistan, told CNN the explosion was just the latest act of violence in Afghanistan's capital: "In the month of August alone, we managed six mass casualties in our hospital, with a total of almost 80 patients. Throughout the year, we have continued to receive gunshot injuries, shrapnel injuries, stabbing injuries, and victims of mine and IED explosions on a daily basis."

"The country is suffering the consequences of a very long conflict that has undermined its future," he said.

The explosion also comes one week after an Afghan cleric, Sheikh Rahimullah Haqqani, was killed in a suicide bombing that the Islamic State claimed responsibility for, BBC reported.

This story is developing. Please check back for updates.