At least 27 people have been killed and 35 others wounded after a large bomb explosion hit a Shia mosque in the Afghan capital, Kabul, officials say.

Afghanistan’s Interior Ministry said the casualties came after a bomber detonated his explosives at the Baqir ul Olum mosque as people were preparing for prayers on Monday.

This is the second blast to rock the Afghan capital on Monday.

According to a Kabul police spokesman, Basir Mujahid, two people were injured in an explosion in the Bagrami district earlier in the day.

Eyewitnesses said two Afghan National Army soldiers were the victims.

There has been no claim of responsibility for the mosque blast, although Afghan officials regularly blame the Taliban for such incidents.

Afghan security forces keep watch in front of a mosque in Kabul, where an explosion happened on November 21, 2016. (Photo by Reuters)

However, the militant group denied they were responsible for the attack.

“We have never attacked mosques as it’s not our agenda,” said the group’s main spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid.

Over the past months, Afghanistan has witnessed a surge in Daesh terror activities, particularly in its eastern regions.

The rise of Daesh in Afghanistan has triggered concerns in a country, which has already been torn apart by decades of Taliban-led militancy and the 2001 invasion of the United States and its allies.

Daesh, mainly active in Syria and Iraq, has reportedly managed to take recruits from Taliban defectors in Afghanistan’s eastern province of Nangarhar, which borders Pakistan.

In August, Daesh claimed responsibility for a bombing during a demonstration held by the Shia Hazara community in Kabul, where at least 85 people were killed more than 400 others wounded.

The surge in terrorist activities across Afghanistan comes despite the presence of forces from the United States and other NATO members.