Roadside bomb kills eight in Afghanistan

Roadside bombs have been responsible for about 18% of civilian casualties in the war-torn country this year

KANDAHAR, AFGHANISTAN: A roadside bomb planted by the Taliban killed at least eight civilians including three women and a child in Afghanistan's Kandahar province on Tuesday, a local official said.

The victims of the blast in Kandahar's Maroof district "were going from Maroof district center to their village when a newly planted Taliban bomb hit their car," said Zia Durani, a spokesperson for Kandahar police.

The southern province of Kandahar has long been a Taliban stronghold. Durani provided no evidence to support the assertion of Taliban responsibility.

The group has not claimed the attack.

Roadside bombs have been responsible for about 18% of civilian casualties this year, according to the United Nations.

Nearly 500 people were killed by improvised explosive devices between January and September.