LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded 20 others outside a bank in the capital city of Afghanistan’s Helmand province on Saturday, the governor’s office said on Saturday.

The bomber detonated an explosives-packed car next to an Afghan army vehicle as soldiers arrived at a bank in Lashkar Gah to collect their pay, the Helmand governor’s spokesman, Omar Zwak, said.

Among the dead were four civilians and three soldiers. Sixteen civilians and four soldiers were wounded, he said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the Taliban have seized large areas of Helmand and have often threatened Lashkar Gah.

Hundreds of international troops are stationed in Helmand as part of the NATO-led effort to train and support Afghan security forces, which have struggled to contain a growing insurgency.

At least one American special forces soldier was wounded in fighting there this week.

To the north of Lashkar Gah, a local official said that an American military air strike killed a number of civilians in a recent bombing in Sangin district.

The allegation has not been independently verified.

U.S. military spokesman Captain Bill Salvin said that U.S. jets had conducted strikes in Sangin in the past few weeks.

While U.S. forces had “no evidence that civilians were killed in these strikes”, Salvin said the command would investigate the claims.

“We take every precaution to prevent and mitigate civilian casualties and we take every allegation seriously.”</s>A suicide bomber kills seven people and wounds 20 others outside a bank in the capital city of Afghanistan's Helmand province on February 11, 2017. A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded 20 others outside a bank in the capital city of Afghanistan's Helmand province today, the governor's office said.

Start the conversation, or Read more at The Daily Star.</s>LASHKAR GAH: A suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded 20 others outside a bank in the capital city of Afghanistan’s Helmand province on Saturday, the governor’s office said on Saturday.

The bomber detonated an explosives-packed car next to an Afghan army vehicle as soldiers arrived at a bank in Lashkar Gah to collect their pay, the Helmand governor´s spokesman, Omar Zwak, said. Among the dead were four civilians and three soldiers. Sixteen civilians and four soldiers were wounded, he said.

There was no immediate claim of responsibility but the Taliban have seized large areas of Helmand and have often threatened Lashkar Gah.

Hundreds of international troops are stationed in Helmand as part of the Nato-led effort to train and support Afghan security forces, which have struggled to contain a growing insurgency. At least one American special forces soldier was wounded in fighting there this week.

To the north of Lashkar Gah, a local official said that an American military air strike killed a number of civilians in a recent bombing in Sangin district. The allegation has not been independently verified.

US military spokesman Captain Bill Salvin said that the US jets had conducted strikes in Sangin in the past few weeks. While US forces had "no evidence that civilians were killed in these strikes", Salvin said the command would investigate the claims.

"We take every precaution to prevent and mitigate civilian casualties and we take every allegation seriously," he said.

Suicide bomber kills seven, injures 20 in Afghanistan was posted in Top Story of TheNews International - https://www.thenews.com.pk on February 12, 2017 and was last updated on February 12, 2017. This news story is related to Print/185777-Suicide-bomber-kills-seven-injures-20-in-Afghanistan/ - breaking news, latest news, pakistan ne. Permanent link to the news story "Suicide bomber kills seven, injures 20 in Afghanistan" is https://www.thenews.com.pk/print/185777-Suicide-bomber-kills-seven-injures-20-in-Afghanistan.</s>LASHKARGAH - A Taliban suicide bomber killed seven people and wounded 20 others outside a bank in the capital city of Afghanistan's Helmand province on Saturday, the governor's office said.

The bomber detonated an explosives-packed car next to an Afghan army vehicle as soldiers arrived at a bank in Lashkargah to collect their pay, the Helmand governor's spokesman, Omar Zwak, said. Among the dead were four civilians and three soldiers, he said.

The Taliban bomber rammed his explosives-laden car into Afghan soldiers who had queued outside the bank. Nearly two dozen others, including women and children, were wounded in the explosion, many of them critically.

The Taliban, who control vast swathes of the opium-ravaged province and have repeatedly threatened to seize Lashkargah, claimed responsibility for the bombing, calling it revenge for recent US air strikes in the volatile district of Sangin.

"A suicide car bomber killed several people, including five soldiers, and 21 others were wounded," Helmand police chief Agha Noor Kentoz told AFP.

Omar Zhwak, the provincial governor's spokesman, confirmed the casualties from the bombing, which upturned military vehicles and left the area strewn with charred debris.

The Italian-run Emergency hospital in Lashkargah said it had received at least 12 people, including a woman and a child.

The Taliban ruled out civilian casualties in a statement on their website, claiming that 21 Afghan army soldiers had been killed. The insurgents are known to exaggerate battlefield claims.

The attack comes after the US military this week stepped up air strikes in Sangin as fierce fighting with the Taliban raised fears that the key district could fall to the insurgents.

NATO on Friday said it was looking into local media reports of nearly a dozen civilian casualties from the strikes. "While supporting and defending Afghan troops, the US conducted air strikes in Sangin district," the coalition said in a statement.

"We're aware of the allegations of civilian casualties, and take every allegation very seriously. We'll work with our Afghan partners to review all related material."

For years Helmand was the centrepiece of the Western military intervention in Afghanistan only for it to slip deeper into a quagmire of instability.

The Taliban effectively control or contest 10 of the 14 districts in Helmand, the deadliest province for British and US troops over the past decade and blighted by a huge opium harvest that helps fund the insurgency.

Lashkargah - one of the last government-held enclaves - also risks falling to the Taliban's repeated ferocious assaults.

The intensified fighting in the province last year forced thousands of people to flee to Lashkargah from neighbouring districts.

The Pentagon said last month it will deploy some 300 US Marines this spring to Helmand.

NATO officially ended its combat mission in December 2014, but the Marines will return to train and advise Afghan soldiers and police officers fighting the Taliban, said US Central Command.

The decision was welcomed by the Afghan government ahead of what is expected to be another fierce spring fighting season.

At least one American special forces soldier was wounded in fighting in Helmand this week.</s>At least seven people were killed when a suicide bomber attacked Afghan soldiers in southern Helmand province, Afghanistan officials said.

Omer Zwak, spokesman for the provincial governor in Helmand, said on Saturday that 22 others were wounded in the attack, which took place in the provincial capital, Lashkar Gah.

Mohammad Rasoul Zazai, spokesman for the army in Helmand, confirmed that three soldiers are among those killed and seven soldiers were wounded.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack, but Taliban insurgents frequently use roadside bombs and suicide attacks to target Afghan security forces as well as government officials across the country.</s>The policemen were targeted in the urban capital of Kunduz province, police chief Sameullah Qatra said, referring to the most volatile zone of the relatively peaceful north.

"He killed ten policemen and six civilians," Qatra said, adding that 30 more people, including those belonging to the security forces, were also wounded.

No one immediately took responsibility for the attack, which bore the hallmarks of Taliban insurgents.

Monday's suicide bombing came two days after a young teenager detonated explosives near the heavily barricaded NATO headquarters in Kabul, killing six civilians, including children.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for that attack, but denied the bomber was a teenager.

Last week, a suicide bomber detonated an explosives-packed vest at a funeral in eastern Nangarhar province, killing at least 25.

Despite the presence of hundreds of thousands of Afghan and foreign troops fighting the Taliban-led insurgency, violence is at its worst since the Islamists were toppled by Afghan and U.S. forces in late 2001, five years after they took power.

A recent U.N. report said the Taliban were responsible for 80 percent of civilian casualties in the conflict.</s>At least six people were killed on Saturday when an explosives-laden car rammed into Afghan soldiers who had queued outside a bank in southern Helmand province to collect their salaries, officials said.

Nearly two dozen others were wounded in the explosion in the capital Lashkar Gah, many of them critically.

No group has so far claimed responsibility, but the resurgent Taliban control vast swathes of the opium-ravaged province and have repeatedly threatened to seize Lashkar Gah.

"A suicide car bomber killed six people, including five soldiers, and 21 others were wounded," Helmand police chief Agha Noor Kentoz told AFP.

Omar Zhwak, the provincial governor's spokesman confirmed the casualties, saying the wounded had been rushed to hospitals in the city. The Italian-run Emergency hospital in Lashkar Gah said it had received at least 12 people, including a woman and a child.

Three military vehicles were destroyed in the bombing, Feda Mohammad, a local witness, told AFP.

For years Helmand was the centrepiece of the US and British military intervention in Afghanistan only for it to slip deeper into a quagmire of instability, with large swathes of the province under the control of the insurgents.

Lashkar Gah -- one of the last government-held enclaves -- also risks falling to the Taliban's repeated ferocious assaults. The intensified fighting in the province recently forced thousands of people to flee to Lashkar Gah from neighbouring districts.
A suicide bomber kills at least seven people outside a bank in Lashkargah.