Helmand Attack Kills 14 Civilians, Injures 30 - Witnesses

KABUL (Pakistan Point News / Sputnik - 29th June, 2020) A series of blasts at an animal market in a remote area of the southern Helmand province in Afghanistan killed 14 civilians and injured 30 others on Monday, witnesses told Sputnik.

"Fourteen civilians were killed and 30 others were injured in the blasts. A number of animals were also killed," a witness said.

Locals did not say whether explosions had been caused by mortar shells or improvised explosive devices, a Sputnik correspondent in Kabul added.

At least eight injured were taken to a hospital in the province's main city of Lashkar Gah, a source at Lashkar Gah Emergency Hospital said to Sputnik.

The market is located in a hard-to-reach Sangin district under control of Taliban insurgents, who blamed the attack on government security forces.

But Omar Zwak, a spokesman for Helmand's governor, said there were no immediate reports of explosions or civilian casualties.