Kabul. October 12: The incident took place in Zhari district of the province on Tuesday after a police vehicle struck a roadside bomb, the Associated Press reported.
Provincial government spokesman Zalmai Ayubi said police were escorting tribal elder, Abdul Wali Khan, back to his home from Kandahar city, which is located 450 kilometers (279 miles) south of capital city Kabul, when the blast occurred.
Ayubi added that the bomb appeared to be remotely detonated, and that the police assume Khan was the target.
Roadside bombs and improvised explosive devices (IEDs) are by far the most lethal weapon Taliban militants use against Afghan forces, foreign troops, and civilians.
A United Nations report said on September 28 that Afghanistan saw a near 40 percent rise in the monthly average number of security incidents recorded for the year through the end of August.
The report also said civilian casualties, already at record levels in the first six months of the year, rose 5 percent for the period from June to August compared with the same months of 2010.
Around 130,000 people were displaced by the conflict in the first seven months of the year, up nearly two-thirds from the same period a year earlier.
Insecurity continues to rise across Afghanistan despite the presence of nearly 150,000 Us-led forces in the Asian country.
—–Agencies