6 Afghan civilians killed in roadside bomb attack

At least six civilians have been killed and more than a dozen wounded in a roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan’s southern province of Helmand, an Afghan official says.

Omar Zwak, a provincial government spokesman, said on Monday that the incident took place in Nawmish District on Sunday.

“The mini-bus touched off an improvised explosive device (IED) in Nawmish District at around 3:00 p.m. local time. The blast killed six passengers and injured 13 commuters,” the spokesman said.

Zwak blamed the Taliban militants for the incident.

Taliban often uses home-made IEDs in its attacks against Afghan troops and the US-led forces. The lethal weapons inflict casualties on civilians as well.

According to Afghan and UN officials, more than 2,500 Afghan civilians died and over 5,000 were wounded in Taliban-led attacks and violence last year.

The United States and its allies invaded Afghanistan in October 2001 as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror. The offensive removed the Taliban from power, but insecurity continues to rise across the country, despite the presence of thousands of US-led troops.