15 civilians killed in Afghanistan

Suspected Taliban militants have killed 15 Afghan civilians execution-style after stopping two vehicles travelling in central Afghanistan.

The armed attackers killed 11 men, three women and one child late on Thursday night in Ghor Province.

According to local authorities, the gunmen made the vehicles pull over and ordered everyone out, after which they lined the passengers up on the side of the road and shot them one by one.

“One man managed to flee. All of the others were shot in the head and chest,” according to Ghor provincial police chief Fahim Qaiem.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the heinous crime, which took place on the same day that two Finnish female aid workers were shot dead by unidentified gunmen in the western city of Herat.

Meanwhile, at least 6 civilians were killed and more than 20 were injured after a bomber on a explosive-packed motorcycle in Takhar Province blew himself and his vehicle up in a busy market.

The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan in 2001 as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but years into the invasion, the country is still grappling with widening insecurity.