18 Afghan civilians killed in blast (Lead)
July 29th, 2011 - 4:32 pm ICT by IANS
Kabul, July 29 (IANS) Eighteen civilians were killed in a massive explosion when their mini-bus ran over a roadside bomb Friday morning in Afghanistan’s Helmand province, police said.
The incident took place in Nahri Sarraj district, 555 km south of Afghan capital Kabul.
“A civilian mini-bus was traveling from a village to Nahri Sarraj district’s bazaar. The bus (went over) a roadside bomb at around 8 a.m. Friday, triggering a powerful blast that left 18 civilians dead,” police officer Kamaluddin Shirzai told Xinhua, adding that several women and children were among the victims.
No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Helmand province has been regarded as a Taliban stronghold.
Taliban militants have used Improvised Explosive Device (IED) or roadside bombs and suicide bombers in their attacks which also inflicted casualties on civilians.
A total of 1,462 Afghan civilians were killed in the first half of 2011, a 15 percent rise over the same period of 2010, according to the United Nations mid-year report released in Kabul July 14.
- Five die in Afghanistan blast - Sep 11, 2011
- 19 killed in Afghanistan roadside blast - Dec 07, 2011
- Four children killed in Afghanistan blast - Nov 01, 2011
- Roadside bomb kills 14 civilians in Helmand - Dec 31, 2010
- Seven die in Afghanistan blast - Feb 28, 2012
- Two kids killed in Afghan bombing - Apr 12, 2012
- Stop night raids, Karzai tells NATO - Dec 25, 2011
- Bombs kill five foreign troops in Afghanistan - Aug 31, 2010
- Bicycle bomb kills 17 in Afghanistan - Mar 31, 2010
- Roadside bomb kills 15 in Afghanistan - Jun 11, 2011
- 16 killed in two blasts in south Afghanistan (Lead) - Jun 11, 2011
- Mullah Omar urges Taliban not to hurt civilians - Nov 05, 2011
- 10 killed in Afghan roadside bombing - Dec 29, 2011
- Nine killed in Afghan bombings - Nov 12, 2011
- Eight Afghan civilians killed in attacks - Jun 03, 2010
Tags: afghan capital kabul, bazaar, casualties, civilians, dead police officer, explosive device, friday morning, helmand province, ied, july 14, massive explosion, militants, mini bus, roadside bomb, roadside bombs, sarraj, suicide bombers, taliban, united nations, xinhua