KABUL, September 2 (RIA Novosti) - At least 23 people were killed and some 50 others seriously wounded in a suicide bomb attack in eastern Afghanistan's Laghman province on Wednesday, local governor Latifulla Mashal said.

The bombing occurred in the regional capital, Mehtar Lim, as officials gathered at a local mosque in the morning. Around 100 other people received minor injuries.

Among the dead is Abdullah Laghmani, who was deputy head of Afghanistan's national security service.

The crime scene has been cordoned off by International Security Assistance Force troops and Afghan soldiers.

Violence has surged in Afghanistan in recent months, with the radical Islamic Taliban group, toppled in a 2001 U.S.-led campaign, staging regular attacks on provincial government officials, police and troops. There were over 70 attacks across the country during the August 20 presidential election.