KANDAHAR: A suicide car bombing killed 14 people, including 10 Afghan police personnel, as the Taliban launched a large-scale attack on Monday on the capital in southern Helmand province.

Since the beginning of this year’s fighting season, the Taliban have expanded their footprints across most of the province and have been at the gates of the city of Lashkar Gah, the provincial capital, for weeks.

According to Haji Marjan, police chief of Nad Ali district who has been deployed to the city, the explosion happened at around 11.30am, after the Taliban targeted police checkpoints across Lashkar Gah.

Mr Marjan said at least 10 police officers, including his brother, and four civilians died in the bombing in the Mukhtar area of police district 2.

He warned the death toll was likely to rise as it was unclear how many people were unaccounted for after the blast.

A doctor at the city’s international emergency hospital said 14 bodies were brought to the clinic. He said 15 wounded were also brought in, including 14 victims of the car bombing and one person who suffered gunshot wounds.

Published in Dawn October 11th, 2016