11 children killed in suicide attack on foreign convoy

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April 30, 2018 11:31 AM

A suicide attack on a foreign military convoy in southern Afghanistan on Monday killed at least 11 children who were nearby, officials said.

Sixteen other people were wounded, including foreign and Afghan security force members, when a bomb-laden car exploded in the southern province of Kandahar, provincial police spokesman Qasim Afghan told AFP.

Kandahar governor spokesman Said AzizAhmad Azizi confirmed the casualty toll. He said five Romanian soldiers and two Afghan police officers were among the injured.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility.

NATO's Resolute Support mission in Afghanistan said eight Romanian soldiers were wounded in the attack. Afghan civilians, including children, and security forces were also among the casualties, it added.

"Our thoughts and prayers are with those wounded, and with the innocent Afghans whose lives were needlessly taken from them by the enemies of Afghanistan," said General John Nicholson, the top US and NATO commander in Afghanistan.

Romanian soldiers are tasked with providing security at Kandahar airport, which is used by foreign forces.

The attack came hours after two suicide blasts in the Afghan capital Kabul killed at least 25 people including Agence France-Presse chief photographer for Afghanistan Shah Marai.

The Islamic State group claimed the Kabul attacks.

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