18 killed in suicide bomb attack
A suicide bomber blew himself up next to a police patrol in southern Afghanistan, killing at least 18 people, including 13 civilians, said a provincial police chief.
The attack in the southern province of Uruzgan also killed five police officers and wounded more than 30 others, said Juma Gul Himat.
The bomber struck the police patrol in a busy intersection of Deh Rawood district, Himat said.
The bombing also damaged or destroyed about nine shops in the area, he said.
Most of those killed and wounded were shopkeepers and young boys selling cigarettes and other goods in the street, Himat said.
Afghan civilians have suffered from a rash of bombings this month.
Around 55 civilians were killed in a massive bomb attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul on Monday, while a government commission said this week that US airstrikes killed 47 civilians in Nangarhar on July 6.
More than 2,300 people - mostly militants - have died in insurgency related violence this year.