At least 15 killed in Afghanistan explosion

Blast reported at religious seminary in Aybak

A view of Aybak in Samangan province, Afghanistan. Getty Images

At least 15 people have been reported killed in an explosion in northern Afghanistan.

The blast took place during afternoon prayers at a religious seminary in the town of Aybak, Samangan province.

At least 27 people were wounded, a hospital official told Tolo news. No group claimed immediate responsibility for the blast.

All of the victims are "children and ordinary people," a doctor told AFP.

Afghanistan's interior ministry has confirmed at least 10 people died in the explosion and said many others were injured.

An investigation has been opened into the incident, said spokesman Abdul Nafy Takor.

Footage posted to social media showed bloodied prayer mats and corpses and debris at the scene. Some local media reported Taliban officials prevented people from filming near the site.

Attacks have become commonplace since the Taliban takeover of Afghanistan more than a year ago.

ISIS, a rival of the Taliban, has often attacked mosques and worshippers, especially members of Afghanistan’s Shiite community, but has also targeted Sunni mosques religious and schools linked to the Taliban.

In August, 21 people were killed in a bombing at a Kabul mosque.

Educational centres have also become regular targets for bombings.

In October, 52 people were killed, mostly young girls, in a suicide attack on a school in a Hazara neighbourhood of Kabul.

Afghan women display placards and chant slogans during a protest called ‘Stop Hazara genocide’ a day after a suicide bomb attack at a learning centre, in Kabul. AFP

Taliban security forces arrive as women march during the protest. AFP

The demonstration took place after a suicide attacker blew himself up in a Kabul study hall as hundreds of pupils were taking tests in preparation for university entrance exams.

The area where the attack took place is home to the minority Hazara community.

Protesters later gathered in front of the hospital and chanted slogans as dozens of heavily armed Taliban, some carrying rocket-propelled-grenade launchers, kept watch.

The aftermath of the suicide bombing of the education centre in Kabul. AP

A Taliban fighter inside the education centre. AP

Security personnel secure the area outside the education centre, where students were sitting mock university entrance exams. AFP

Officials said dozens of people were killed and injured in the blast. AFP

Afghans on the streets outside Mohammad Ali Jinah Hospital following the suicide attack. Reuters

A Taliban fighter stands guard near the scene of the blast. AFP

Mohammad Ali Jinah Hospital, where some of the victims were taken. Reuters

Taliban gunmen guard the site of the attack at the learning centre in Dasht-e-Barchi. AFP

Relatives and medics carry a wounded girl from an ambulance outside a hospital in Kabul. AFP

The aftermath of the blast at a learning centre in Kabul. Photo: @taahir_khan / Twitter

A woman arrives at a hospital in Kabul to look for a relative after the attack. AFP

A wounded man is brought to a hospital in Kabul following the bombing. AFP

Taliban fighters stand guard outside a hospital in Kabul as people gather to search for relatives. AFP