1st LD Writethru: 1 killed, 8 wounded in eastern Afghan mosque blast

JALALABAD, Afghanistan, Dec. 8 (Xinhua) -- At least one Afghan civilian was killed and eight others wounded after a bomb ripped through a mosque in eastern province of Nangarhar on Friday, a provincial government spokesman said.

"The incident occurred at around midday in Sultan Khel Mosque in Hazarnaw locality of remote Muhmand Dara district. The blast left the prayer leader of the mosque dead on the spot and injured eight civilians," spokesman Attaullah Khogyani told Xinhua.

The injured were shifted to a hospital in the district bordering Pakistan.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far.

The Taliban and Islamic State (IS) militant groups often target civilians and religious clerics as well as local leaders for their support to the Afghan government and the NATO-led coalition forces stationed in the country.

More than 2,640 civilians were killed and over 5,370 others injured in conflict-related incidents in the first nine months of 2017, according to figures released by the United Nations mission in Afghanistan. Enditem