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6 die in Helmand explosion
At least six civilians were killed in an explosion in southern Helmand province of Afghanistan, local officials said Tuesday.Provincial governor’s spokesman Omar Zwak confirmed the incident took place late on Monday evening in Nawa district. He said the civilians belonged to a single family and at least five others also sustained injuries in the explosion which triggered due to an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) planted on a roadside. Zwak further added that the civilians were traveling in a vehicle and were their way to Khanshin to participate in a wedding when their vehicle struck the IED planted by the militants. The anti-government armed militant groups including the Taliban insurgents have not commented regarding the report so far. Taliban insurgents and militants belonging to the other insurgent groups frequently use Improvised Explosive Device (IED) as the weapon of their choice to target the security forces but the ordinary civilians are often targeted in such attacks. This comes as the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan released the latest civilian casualties report late last month which stated at least 3726 civilians were killed or wounded between January and June of this year. The UN mission said the civilian casualties in the country has reached to a record number since counting began in 2009, with 5,166 civilians recorded killed or maimed in just the first six months of this year, of whom almost one-third were children. The total civilian casualty figure recorded by the UN between 1 January 2009 and 30 June 2016 has risen to 63,934, including 22,941 deaths and 40,993 injured. According to the UN mission, the anti-government elements remain responsible for 60 percent of the civilian casualties with ground engagements continuing to cause the highest number of civilian casualties, followed by complex and suicide attacks and improved explosive devices (IEDs). Posted by: badanov 2016-08-31 |
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