LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan (Reuters) - A suspected car bomb on Monday killed at least 10 police amid increased Taliban attacks on the besieged capital of the southwestern Afghan province of Helmand, with the toll expected to rise, a security official said. Omar Zwak, the Helmand governor’s spokesman who gave the casualty figures, said the attack occurred in a market in Nawa, a district in the center of the province, which has seen heavy fighting in recent weeks as government forces have battled for control with Taliban insurgents. He added that civilians and forces personnel were among the dead, while more than a dozen others had been wounded. A source working at a nearby hospital told AFP on condition of anonymity that the bodies of 15 victims had been brought to the hospital. A local medical source claimed that 19 people had been injured in the blast. "The majority of the dead belong to Afghan forces and most of the wounded are civilians," the source said. Following the incident, the Taliban claimed responsibility by directly sending messages to the media.
A car bomb in Helmand Province kills up to 13 people, including Afghan Army soldiers and civilians, and wounds 18 others, according to government spokesman Omar Zwak.