Roadside blast kills 14 Afghan villagers on way to celebrations

A ROADSIDE blast ripped through a pickup truck in southern Afghanistan yesterday, killing 14 villagers who were travelling to a provincial capital for holiday celebrations, an official said.

Meanwhile, President Hamid Karzai said there must be better coordination between Afghan and foreign troops to avoid civilians casualties, while the United Nations expressed concern about civilians being caught up in the fight against Taliban forces.

Yesterday’s explosion went off near a village five miles west of Tirin Kot, the capital of Uruzgan. Captain Andre Salloum, a spokesman for NATO’s International Security Assistance Force, said it was caused by an anti-tank mine, but it was not immediately clear if it was an old mine or newly planted by insurgents.