Roadside blast kills 9 civilians in Afghanistan

Afghan authorities say a roadside bomb in northwest Afghanistan has killed nine civilians, including five children, as they were herding cattle.

Afghan authorities say a roadside bomb in northwest Afghanistan has killed nine civilians, including five children, as they were herding cattle.

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Police said on Saturday the blast went off in the Ghormach district of Faryab province.

Lal Mohammad Ahmadzia, a regional police spokesman, said one child was also injured in the blast late on Friday.

In a midyear report, the United Nations said 1,462 Afghan civilians lost their lives in the first six months of this year in the crossfire of the battle between Taliban insurgents and Afghan, US and Nato forces. During the first half of last year, 1,271 Afghan civilians were killed.