If confirmed, the death toll in Friday’s attack would be the highest in an attack by militants since US and NATO troops left Afghanistan at the end of August and the Taliban took control of the country.

People carry the body of a victim from a mosque following a bombing in Kunduz province, northern Afghanistan, Friday. (AP)

The blast occurred in a Shiite mosque in Kunduz province during the weekly Friday prayer service at the Gozar-e-Sayed Abad Mosque when members of the Shiite religious minority typically come in large numbers for worship. Witness Ali Reza said he was praying at the time of the explosion and reported seeing many casualties.

Videos and photos on social media and elsewhere appear to show people searching the destroyed mosque and moving a worshipper’s body from the gruesome scene to an ambulance.

A man walks down blood-stained steps of a mosque following a bombing in Kunduz province, northern Afghanistan. (AP)

Taliban chief spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said the Shiite mosque was the target and that a “large number” of worshippers were killed and wounded. He said Taliban special forces had arrived to the scene and were investigating the incident.

#جنایت:
ظهر امروز در منطقه خان اباد بندر مربوطات مرکز ولایت قندز در یک مسجد هموطنان اهل تشیع یک انفجار رخ داد، که از اثر آن تعداد هموطنان ما شهید و زخمی شدند.
مجاهدین قطعه خاص به محل حادثه رسیدند و بر رسی ها را اغاز کردند.

— Zabihullah (..ذبـــــیح الله م ) (@Zabehulah_M33) October 8, 2021

The cause of the blast was not immediately clear. No group has yet claimed responsibility for it.

The Taliban leadership has been grappling with a growing threat from the local Islamic State affiliate, known as the Islamic State in Khorasan. IS militants have ramped up attacks to target their rivals, including two deadly bombings in Kabul.

IS has also targeted Afghanistan’s religious minorities in attacks.