2nd LD Writethru: 8 killed, 30 injured in explosion in N. Afghanistan: official

About eight civilians were killed and 30 others wounded in a bomb attack in Afghanistan's northern province of Badakhshan on Monday, a local official said.

"The blast ripped through the main square of Kishim district, southwest of provincial capital Faizabad city. As a result of the incident, eight civilians were killed and 30 persons were injured," Nawid Froutan, spokesman of the provincial government, told Xinhua.

The blast was caused by explosive attached into a motorcycle at the crowded circle, the spokesman said.

The casualties were shifted to nearby hospitals by ambulances and police vehicles while some of the wounded were transported to Taluqan city, capital of the neighboring Takhar province.

"Majority of the affected people were local vendors while several women and children were among the injured. Many shops around the site were also damaged," the spokesman noted.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack yet.

The explosion was the third bomb attack in the country within a day.

Some 14 Nepalese security guards of a foreign embassy were killed and nine people injured after a suicide bomber struck a bus in eastern part of the national capital of Kabul early Monday morning.

The attack was followed by a roadside bombing which injured five people including a provincial council member in western part of the city.

Taliban militant group has claimed responsibility for the Kabul bombings.

The Taliban-led insurgency has been rampant since early April when the militant group launched its annual rebel offensive in different areas of the country.

About 600 civilians were killed and more than 1,340 others wounded in conflict-related violence and Taliban-led attacks in the first quarter of the year, according to UN mission in the Asian country. Endit