At least eight Afghan civilians, including four children, have been killed in an attack in the western Farah Province, Afghan officials says, although it was immediately unclear whether they died in a military air strike or a roadside bomb blast.

Muhammad Naser Mehri, spokesman for the provincial governor, said on March 4 the incident late on March 3 was a roadside bomb explosion that took place in the Bala Buluk district.

But family members of the victims say they were hit by an air strike.

One resident, a 30-year-old mother of four named Salima, said two of her children were killed and a third wounded in an air strike.

Dawlat Waziri, a Defense Ministry spokesman, said an investigation of the incident was under way.

"We are aware of the allegations made by the local people, right now an investigation is going on into the incident in Farah," Waziri said.

At least 22 other people were wounded in the attack, according to local hospital officials.

Farah's Bala Buluk district has been the scene of several recent clashes between Afghan security forces and armed insurgents.

Based on reporting by AP and dpa</s>At least eight Afghan civilians, including four children, have been killed and 22 more injured in a suspected airstrike in the Bala Boluk district of western Farah Province.

Families of the victims said the civilians were hit by an airstrike on Saturday, contradicting a report by the provincial governor spokesman Mohammad Naser Mehri, who said the casualties were the result of a roadside bomb explosion.

Authorities of a local hospital also said those wounded in the incident were taken there for medical treatment, noting that three of them are in critical condition.

Local Tolo news outlet further cited relatives of the victims as saying that all those killed and injured in the attack were civilians – most of the women and children.

According to the report, two army helicopters bombed a “convoy of civilians” as they were evacuating the area due to an ongoing military operation that recently began against militants in parts of the district.

The convoy was reportedly en route from a village in Bala Boluk to a safer place in the violence-hit district when it came under attack.

An official in the Farah Provincial Council was also confirmed the air raid and the number of the casualties, while Defense Ministry spokesman General Dawlat Warizi said an investigation is underway into the incident.

Afghanistan is grappling with insecurity since the 2001 US-led military invasion of the country as part of Washington’s so-called war on terror, which removed the Taliban militant group from power.

However, many parts of the country remain plagued by militancy despite the presence of foreign troops.

In recent years, the Daesh terror group has also managed to gain a foothold in the country’s east, further complicating Kabul’s military operations.

In another development, at least 23 local elements of the Daesh terrorist group were reported killed in separate operations conducted in Zabul and Nangarhar provinces in southern and eastern Afghanistan.

Defense Ministry spokesman Waziri said at least 17 loyalists of the terror group were killed in an operation conducted by the Special Forces in Arghandab district of Zabul.

He added in a Friday briefing that the operations were conducted late on Thursday targeting the terrorists in Malik Khel village of Arghandab.

The official also stated that six Daesh affiliates were killed in an airstrike conducted in Lalpur district of Nangarhar province.

Zabul is among the relatively volatile provinces in southern Afghanistan where the Taliban as well as Daesh terrorists are actively operating in a number of its districts.
• VIP Guard Killed In Clash Between Ghani Advisor And His Relatives</s>At least eight Afghan civilians, including four children, were killed in an attack late Friday night in western Farah province, according to Afghan officials. However there is disagreement over what exactly caused the deaths. Mohammad Naser Mehri, spokesman for the provincial governor, said Saturday that the incident was a roadside bomb explosion which took place in the Bala Buluk district. But family members of the victims are claiming they were hit by an airstrike.

General Dawlat Waziri, a Defense Ministry spokesman, told The Associated Press that an investigation of the incident is underway. “We are aware of the allegations made by the local people, right now an investigation is going on into the incident in Farah,” Waziri said. Dr Abdul Hakim Rasouli, director of Farah Hospital, said that 22 others are wounded in the attack. Three of the wounded are in critical condition and will be transferred to another hospital in neighboring Herat province for their further treatment, he said.

Farah’s Bala Buluk district has been the site of several recent clashes between Afghan security forces and armed insurgents. One resident, a 30-year-old mother of four named Salima, said two of her children were killed and a third wounded. In a phone interview with The Associated Press, Salima, who like many Afghans goes by only one name, said her family was hit by an airstrike.

“I don’t want to be alive anymore while I don’t have my children with me,” she said, crying. Samila said that her village had been the site of ongoing gun battles for the past three days and that Taliban militants had warned villagers to leave their homes for safety.</s>Some districts of Farah Province Bakwa, Khak-i- Safid, Bala Bulok, Gulestan and Peshroad are mostly covered with poppy crops, Ariana News correspondents and cameraman visited the most unrest place of Balabulok district Shewan village where its residents freely cultivate poppy in their village for years.

One of the farmers in Shewan village Badar said, “In the past both Government and Taliban used to come by and collect the poppy, but now I collect myself sell it to the Narcotic drugs smugglers and I provide part of my cultivation to our Mullah as tithe .

In bakawa district there are hundreds of Narcotic drugs production factories where cocaine, Heroin, Cristal are produced and International drug traffickers come by to purchase the wealthy phenomenon.

Farah Counter Narcotic Drugs Director Shafiqullah Dawran said, “There are a lot of production factories producing Narcotic drugs cocaine, Heroin, Cristal in Bakwah district.”

Narcotic Drugs Traffickers are using underage children to irrigate poppy crops and avoid them to go to schools at these ages.

One of the young farmers Dilawar said, “ I take care of the poppy crops, I don’t go to school.”

Meanwhile Local officials in Farah said neighboring countries have created good markets for the poppy production for the regional and International drug Traffickers.

Deputy Governor of Farah Mohammad Younus Rasouli said, “ A protocol was signed to take the poppy cultivation out of the country even not to Iran to other Foreign countries where its being used and it has customers.”

Poppy crops and cultivation in Farah provoked the war between the Government and Insurgents, because Taliban are being benefited the most out of the poppy production to stand against Afghan security forces.
According to provincial officials, at least eight people are killed and another 22 are injured by a roadside bomb in Farah Province. However, according to locals, the attack was actually an airstrike.