At least 35 civilians attending a wedding party were killed and 13 people wounded during a raid by Afghan government forces on a militant hideout nearby, two officials in southern Helmand province said on Monday.
The house officials said was being used by the Taliban to train suicide bombers was located adjacent to a wedding venue that also came under fire during Sunday night’s attack.
“Thirty-five civilians were killed and 13 are injured. These people were attending a wedding party near the attack site in the Khaksar area of Musa Qala district,” said Attaullah Afghan, a member of the Helmand provincial council.
A second provincial council member, Abdul Majid Akhundzadah, said 40 people, all civilians, were killed in the attack.
The defense ministry said the Taliban hideout was also used by foreign nationals working for the hardline Islamist group.
“As a result of a joint operation in Musa Qala district of Helmand, 22 Taliban members were killed and 14 others arrested,” the ministry said in a statement, adding that five Pakistanis and one Bangladeshi national were among those arrested.
The ministry said it will investigate the reports of civilian casualties.
The Taliban said Afghan soldiers backed by US forces conducted a night air strike, followed by ground clashes between their fighters and Afghan forces in the Musa Qala district.
Several civilians at a wedding party were killed and 18 members of the Afghan forces died in the fighting, the Taliban said in a statement.
This comes as violence has flared up in Afghanistan in recent months which led to a high number of casualties not only among the warring sides but also among the Afghan civilians. A BBC Pashto survey revealed that at least 2,307 people had been killed and 1,948 others wounded in August alone.
According to the report, war has been taking lives of at least 74 Afghans every day in August.
