63 killed in wedding explosion (Photos)

A suicide bomber killed 63 people and wounded 182 in an attack on a wedding reception in Kabul, Afghanistan, on Saturday evening.

The explosion occurred in a Shiite neighbourhood as people gathered to celebrate a wedding in the Dubai City wedding hall. The victims included women and children, an official said.

The Associated Press quoted a witness, Gul Mohammad, as saying the blast occurred near the stage where musicians were and “all the youths, children and all the people who were there were killed.”

The Shiites are a minority in Afghanistan and have been repeatedly targeted by the Taliban and other Sunni armed groups in the country.

The Taliban, which has carried out attacks in several parts of Afghanistan, however, denied responsibility for Saturday’s incident and condemned it.

The Islamic State (IS) group said it was behind the attack.