Roadside bomb kills 19 in south Afghanistan

A minibus struck a roadside bomb while driving in southern Afghanistan on Wednesday, triggering an explosion that killed 19 Afghan civilians, officials said.The vehicle was driving on a road in Helmand province's volatile Sangin district -- a Taliban stronghold -- when it hit the bomb, said Daoud Ahmadi, a spokesman for the Helmand government.At least five children were among the dead, he said. Another six people were wounded and all were being treated at a NATO base.No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack, a common situation when bombs kill civilians.The blast comes a day after twin bombings on Shiite Muslims celebrating the holiday of Ashoura left 60 dead and sparked fears that attacks in Afghanistan might be taking on a sectarian dimension for the first time.Ashoura honours the death of Imam Hussein, a grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, in 680 AD.Afghan President Hamid Karzai cut short a European trip because of yesterday's attacks and returned to Kabul today to visit the scores of wounded and the bereaved families of those killed in the capital.A suicide bomber slaughtered 56 Shiite worshippers and wounded more than 160 others yesterday outside a shrine where hundreds had gathered to worship.One US citizen was also among the dead, according to a statement issued by the American embassy in Kabul.The blast, coupled with another smaller explosion in a northern city that killed four people in a holiday vehicle procession, marked the first major assault on a Muslim sect in Afghanistan in recent memory.