Ayaz Gul
VOA News
April 20, 2018

ISLAMABAD — A roadside bomb blast in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province Friday killed at least five civilians and wounded more than 10 others.

The victims were traveling to the Haska Meena district from the provincial capital of Jalalabad when their passenger vehicle struck the bomb, a local government spokesman told VOA.

Attaullah Khogyani said four children and two women were among those wounded. He added the attack occurred in a remote village named Khataki, which is not under the control of the Afghan government.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility.

Taliban insurgents and militants linked to the Afghan branch of the Islamic State terrorist group operate in Haska Meena and several other districts in Nangarhar. The volatile province borders Pakistan.

The United Nations recently said conflict-related civilian casualties have already risen to record levels this year.

The U.N. Assistance Mission in Afghanistan, or UNAMA, which documents civilian casualties, says the armed conflict has caused 2,260 civilian casualties, including more than 700 deaths, in the first three months of 2018.

Last year, UNAMA recorded more than 10,000 civilian casualties, including around 3,500 fatalities.