7 health workers injured in southern Afghan blast

Seven health workers have been injured in a bomb attack in Afghanistan's southern province of Kandahar, a provincial government spokesman said on Wednesday.

"On Tuesday evening, a vaccination team conducted a vaccination campaign in surrounding areas of Takhta Pul district. As the seven- member team was returning to district center their vehicle touched off a roadside bomb, injuring all people aboard the vehicle," spokesman Samim Khpalwak told Xinhua.

The injured who did not sustain life-threatening wounds were shifted to a district hospital for treatment.

Kandahar, notorious for poppy growing, is also a known Taliban stronghold.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

Taliban militants have largely been using roadside bombs against security forces but the lethal weapons also inflict casualties on civilians.

Nearly 1,600 civilians were killed and more than 3,300 others wounded in conflicts and attacks in the first half of the year, according to UN mission figures. Endi