KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) Two roadside bombs exploded Friday in different parts of Afghanistan's volatile south, killing 12 people, including five women, Afghan officials said.
The deputy governor of Zabul province, Mohammed Rasoolyar, said a bomb destroyed a bus near the provincial capital, Qalat, killing all nine people on board. The bombing took place along a main highway that links the capital, Kabul, with the restive south, Rasoolyar said.
In Kandahar province, the birthplace of the Taliban, two men and a child died when the motorcycle they were riding hit a roadside bomb in Ghorak district, a hotbed of Taliban activity, said Javid Faisel, a spokesman for the provincial governor.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the bombings, but blame likely will fall on Taliban insurgents.
The south is considered a Taliban stronghold and insurgents there stage near-daily attacks against Afghan and NATO soldiers. Their bombs routinely kill innocent civilians.
