A suicide bomber killed at least 27 people and wounded dozens on Monday in an explosion at a crowded Shi'ite mosque in the Afghan capital Kabul, officials said. The attacker entered the Baqir ul Olum mosque during a ceremony, the interior ministry said in a statement.

"I saw people screaming and covered in blood," a survivor told Afghanistan's Ariana Television. He said around 40 dead and 80 wounded had been taken from the building before rescue services arrived at the scene, but there was no independent confirmation of those figures.

The Taliban, seeking to reimpose Islamic law after their 2001 ouster, denied they were responsible for the attack. "We have never attacked mosques as it's not our agenda," said the movement's main spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid.