Suicide car bombing kills 7 in southern Afghanistan

By Shadi Khan Saif

KABUL, Afghanistan

A suicide car bombing targeting security forces in Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province claimed at least seven lives, officials said Wednesday.

Umar Zwak, spokesman for the provincial governor, told Anadolu Agency the incident took place when militants rammed an explosive-laden car into a security forces’ vehicle near the police headquarters and the Rehmani Mosque in the provincial capital Lashkargah city.

“Four security personnel and three civilians including two women and a young girl were martyred in the attack”, he said.

More than 30 people were also injured in the bombing.

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attack. In a statement, Qari Yosuf Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Taliban, asserted ‘scores’ of soldiers have been killed in the attack.

Lying south to the Taliban’s birthplace Kandahar, Helmand remains one of the most insecure provinces with large-scale poppy cultivation.

Last month, the Afghan National Security Forces (ANSF) backed by the U.S. airpower managed to reclaim restive Nawa district in Helmand after over a year when the Taliban overrun it. Since then, large scale deadly clashes have erupted in various pockets of the province claiming many lives on both sides.