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Militants killed in accidental blast in Afghan province

Xinhua, May 5, 2017 Adjust font size:

Twelve militants were killed and 23 others wounded in an accidental blast in Afghanistan's eastern province of Ghazni, the country's Defense Ministry said on Friday.

"Militants were busy in building Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) and landmines in a compound in Ab Band district, Ghani province. As a result of a mine explosion in the building, 12 militants had been killed and 23 others wounded," the ministry said in a statement without providing details.

Among the casualties were several bomb-making experts and foreign militants, it said.

The Taliban militant group uses IEDs to target security forces but the lethal weapons also inflict casualties on civilians, according to military officials.

About 715 civilians were killed and over 1,460 others injured in conflict-related incidents across Afghanistan in the first three months of the year, according to figures released by the UN mission in the country.

Out of casualties, 86 civilians were killed and 132 others wounded in IED attacks across the country over the period. Endit