Kabul: Eight civilians and two police officers were killed after a suicide bomber detonated his explosives in a crowded market in southern Afghanistan.

Helmand Province police chief Asadullah Sherzad said on Monday the bomber targeted a police vehicle in the market.
Sherzad said 25 civilians and two police were also hurt in the attack and several shops were destroyed.

Meanwhile, Gunmen on a motorbike killed a district chief in central Afghanistan on Monday, a provincial spokesman said.

Abdul Rahim Desewal was shot dead as he left his house in Ghazni city, capital of central Ghazni province, said Sayed Ismail Jahangir, spokesman for the provincial governor. Desewal's bodyguard was wounded in the attack.

The gunmen fled the scene after the shooting, Jahangir said.


Desewal was the chief of Andar district in Ghazni province, an area of intense militant activity.

It was not clear who was responsible, but Taliban militants regularly assassinate government officials in their attempt to weaken the grip of President Hamid Karzai's administration in the provinces.