Roadside bomb claims lives of seven Afghan civilians

KABUL, Dec 24 (Xinhua): At least seven civilians were killed in a roadside bomb explosion in Afghanistan's southern province of Helmand on Sunday, provincial government spokesman said.

The incident occurred in the morning after a minibus touched off a roadside bombing in Marja district, Helmand province, spokesman Omar Zwak told Xinhua.

The bus was carrying 10 people, three commuters aboard were also injured after the blast, he said, blaming enemies of Afghanistan, a term referring to the Taliban militant group for the incident.

Taliban and Islamic State (IS) fighters have been using home-made Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) to make roadside bombs and landmines to target security forces, but the lethal weapons also inflict casualties on civilians.