8 Afghan Civilians Killed in Fighting, Bombing

A clash between the Afghan forces and Taliban militants left four civilians dead in a southern district where a major NATO operation early this year was meant to reassert government control, a provincial official said Thursday.

Also, a roadside bombing took in the same province that killed four other civilians.

The clash happened on early Wednesday after militants fired on an Afghan forces patrol in Marjah district, sparking a gunbattle, Helmand provincial spokesman Daoud Ahmadi said. The civilians — three men and one woman — were killed when a rocket hit a house, he said.

No security forces were hurt, Ahmadi added. It was not clear if there were any militant casualties.

Four other civilians — two men and two young boys — were killed when their motorbike hit a roadside bomb in Helmand's Nawzad district on Wednesday afternoon, he said.