11 killed, 23 injured in eastern Afghan car bombing

Some 11 persons were killed and 23 others wounded in a suicide car bombing in Afghanistan's eastern province of Nangarhar on Tuesday, the provincial government said in a statement.

One militant detonated a car bomb near the house of Malik Dehqan, a pro-government leader, in Nazyan district at around 5:30 p.m. local time. The blast killed 11 persons, including two children and the bomber, the statement said.

Dehqan, who also leads a local militiamen group or the uprising group, was among the injured, the statement noted.

The injured also included two brothers of Dehqan and three children in addition to several uprising group members, shop owners and passersby.

The injured were shifted to hospitals in provincial capital Jalalabad city and the neighboring Ghani Khel district, where four of the injured remained in critical condition.

The provincial governor, Salim Khan Kaundozai, strongly condemned the attack and instructed the local officials to provide best medical treatment for the injured.

The district has been the scene of clashes between the security forces backed by the uprising group and militants over the past couple of months.

No group has claimed responsibility yet for the attack, but the Taliban insurgent group routinely claims responsibility for such attacks.

Militants of the Islamic State (IS) fighters also have presence in the district and surrounding areas.

Source: XINHUA