4 killed, 6 injured in southern Afghan car bombing

Four people were killed and six others wounded Saturday morning in car bomb attack in Afghanistan's Kandahar province, said a provincial government spokesman. "Three civilians, one woman and two children, were killed and six civilians were wounded in a suicide car bomb which was set off near a private hospital in Mandi Shar, an area out of Kandahar city this morning," spokesman Jawid Faisal told Xinhua. He said the attacker was also killed in the attack which took place at around 0930 (local time) along a road leading to Kandahar airport. The likely target of the attack was a joint convoy of NATO-led troops and Afghan army soldiers, the spokesman said, adding no member of the convoy was hurt in the attack as the blast took place minutes after the motorcade passed by the area. Several houses and vehicles nearby the blast site were also damaged. No group has claimed responsibility yet for the attack, but the Taliban insurgents routinely claim responsibility for such attacks. The Taliban-led insurgency has been rampant since the militant group launched annual rebel offensive in April against Afghan government forces and about 98,000 NATO-led troops stationed in the country. On Friday morning, one civilian, three policemen and seven militants were killed and two dozens of people were wounded when Taliban launched an attack on US consulate building in Western Herat province. In Eastern Paktika province, up to 21 people, including 10 policemen, were wounded in a car bombing also on Friday morning.