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Saturday 11 December 2010

Afghanistan roadside bomb 'kills 15 civilians'

At least 15 people have been killed by a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan, provincial officials say.

The explosion reportedly hit a pickup truck carrying civilians in the province of Helmand on Friday afternoon.

The office of the governor of Helmand said that the blast had taken place in the remote village of Khan Neshin.

Helmand is one of the most violent regions of Afghanistan, with Nato troops battling Taliban rebels.

The attack happened as the truck, carrying villagers, all men, to a nearby bazaar, ran over the bomb and detonated it, said Daoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the provincial governor.

Four people had been injured in the blast, he said.

Mr Ahmadi blamed Taliban militants for planting the bomb, believed to be meant for American troops patrolling the area.

The BBC's Paul Wood in Kabul says British and American troops have largely achieved their aim to push the Taliban out of the population centres in the region, and the militants now operate mainly in remote areas.

There are also reports that five Afghan army soldiers and nine civilians were injured in an attack by Taliban militants in northern Kunduz province on Saturday.

In Paktika province, the deputy governor said seven civilians had been killed by an air strike by the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf).

However, Isaf said the seven killed were insurgents who had attacked an Isaf patrol.

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