Three children from the same family were killed and four others were injured in northern Afghanistan in a mortar attack allegedly carried out by militants, an official said Wednesday, dpa reported.
A shell hit a civilian house on Tuesday night in the Chardarah district of the northern province of Kunduz, killing three children aged between 5 and 10 years and injuring four others, Abdul Momen Omarkhil, the district governor, said.
He blamed Taliban militants for the shelling. The house is located next to a police check point in the Aai Khanum area of the district, the governor said.
Taliban militants are active in the district where Afghan and NATO-led forces are trying to defeat Taliban militants.
The first six months of 2011 were the deadliest for civilians since the decade-long war began, according to report released by the United Nations earlier this month.
The country saw 1,462 civilian deaths in January to June, a 15-per-cent increase on the same period last year.
More than 80 per cent of the deaths were attributed to Taliban and anti-government forces.
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