Afghanistan: 14 killed, 3 wounded after vehicle hits roadside bomb

At least 14 people were killed in Afghanistan after the vehicle they were travelling in hit a roadside bomb. The tragic incident happened around 9 am in Daitundi province, which lies in the centre of the country. As per Ariana news, a total of 17 people were on board the vehicle when the blast occurred.

Attack attributed to Taliban

The bomb targeted a bus carrying civilians in Dasht-e-Sulaiman village, Tariq Arian, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior Affairs told Afghan voice agency. Amongst those killed, were seven women, five children and two men totalling up to 14. The remaining three were wounded, the officials confirmed. This is the second blast in the province this year, which is considered safe otherwise, the interior ministry stated blaming the Taliban for the attack. On the other hand, the Taliban has not commented on the event yet.

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Earlier this year, the Afghanistan governemnt signed a peace treaty with Taliban. The Afghan Taliban peace talks comprise the first-ever official talks between the two warring sides i.e. Taliban and Afghanistan Government, which began earlier this month in the Gulf state of Qatar, to discuss peace in the region. The insurgent group Taliban had refused to sit for talks until now, accusing the Afghanistan government of being 'weak and a puppet of the United States'.

A number of Talibani prisoners who were released by the Afghanistan government over the past few months have returned to the battlefield, country’s top official Abdullah Abdullah said. Almost 5,000 prisoners have been released by Kabul as a part of Afghan Peace deal, which was brokered by the US and signed earlier in February. However, Abdullah, who chairs Afghanistan High Council for National Reconciliation revealed that a considerable number of them have taken arms again.

Read: MEA Jaishankar, Former Afghan Vice President Dostum Discuss Peace Talk Developments

Read: US Special Rep Khalilzad Doubts Taliban Will Accept Ceasefire Until Political Settlement

Representative image/ AP