Four killed in Afghanistan bomb blast

A bomb exploded in the main southern Afghan city of Kandahar today, killing four people and wounding three others.

The bomb was hidden outside the home of a former militia commander who was allied to the US-backed Northern Alliance, which swept the Taliban from power in late 2001, said deputy police chief Abdul Hakim Hungar.

The blast killed the former commander, Agha Shah, a supporter of President Hamid Karzai, as well as three other civilian passers-by, he said. The three injured were taken to hospital.

He said it was not immediately clear if the blast was because of a personal dispute or was an attack by Taliban rebels.

The bombing came a day after a suicide attack in the city injured four British government officials.

Insurgents have stepped up attacks against people allied to Karzai’s US-backed government, as well as international security forces there, leaving more than 1,300 dead in the past half year.