KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, June 11 (Xinhua) -- A roadside bomb hit a minibus in southern Afghanistan's restive province of Kandahar on Friday, killing nine civilians and wounding eight others.
Zalmay Ayubi, spokesman for the Kandahar provincial government, told Xinhua that the incident took place on the highway linking Kandahar and the neighboring province of Helmand.
Among those killed were four women and three children, said the official, adding that servicemembers of NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) rushed to the scene and sent the injured to hospital.
Kandahar, branded as hotbed of the Taliban, has been seeing increase of violence since the NATO force earlier this year announced to launch a major offensive on the Taliban in the province this month.
