Gunmen kill 13 bus passengers in Afghanistan: officials

KABUL: Gunmen killed 13 passengers travelling on a bus in Afghanistan on Tuesday, underlining the country´s fragile security situation as President Ashraf Ghani holds talks with the United States in Washington.

The attack in Wardak province, which lies close to Kabul, is the latest to hit civilians in Afghanistan´s still-bloody conflict.

Ghani is due to meet US President Barack Obama on Tuesday to discuss the pace of the American troop withdrawal after more than a decade.

With the spring fighting season about to begin, Ghani has asked the US for "flexibility" as it pulls out its remaining 10,000 troops by the end of 2016.

Ataullah Khogyani, the spokesman for the Wardak provincial governor, told AFP a group of gunmen opened fire on a bus around 1:00 am (2030 GMT Monday), killing 13 people including one woman.

The bus was heading for the restive southern city of Kandahar, once a bastion of the Taliban.

The Taliban´s chief spokesman, Zabihullah Mujahid, denied they were behind Tuesday´s attack, though the district where it happened is known to have a strong militant presence.

The Taliban often deny attacks that involve a high civilian death toll.
Mohammad Ali, the deputy governor of neighbouring Ghazni province, confirmed the incident and said the gunmen picked their victims and shot them one by one.

Both officials said the motive for the attack was still under investigation. It was unclear if anyone from the bus escaped the attack.