Explosion At Afghanistan Graveyard Kills At Least 7 Women And 7 Children

At least 14 women and children were killed in an explosion at a graveyard in eastern Afghanistan, on Thursday, local media reports said.

Authorities told Reuters at least 14 women and children were killed in the incident, which occurred as the country celebrated the Eid al-Fitr holiday, and graveyards were crowded with people paying homage to deceased relatives, as part of a traditional ceremony.

Local authorities said that an improvised explosive device, or IED, planted near the graves caused the explosion in the Ghani Khel district of Nangarhar province near the country's border with Pakistan, Al Jazeera reported.

The attack, which also wounded three women and one child according to Reuters, occurred when the group visited the grave of the wife of a tribal leader who worked for Afghan security forces, media reports said. No group yet has claimed responsibility for the attack.

Nangarhar province, which lies between Pakistan’s tribal belt and the capital city, Kabul, has witnessed several attacks by insurgent groups in recent months.

Last week, at least 70 people including 22 Afghan policemen and dozens of Taliban insurgents were killed in Nangarhar, when hundreds of insurgents attacked a police and military convoy. The convoy was returning after a security operation to rescue a politician threatened by the Taliban.

On Saturday, at least nine people, including seven children, were killed and 21 other civilians were wounded in an attack near the Indian Consulate in Jalalabad. And, on Sunday, the head of Nangarhar Appeal Court, three of his bodyguards and 12 civilians were injured, when a remotely-controlled bomb exploded in Jalalabad.