Roadside Bomb Kills 19 in Afghanistan

Victims were enroute to wedding

An explosion from a roadside bomb tore into a minibus carrying people to a wedding in northern Afghanistan on Friday, leaving 19 dead and 16 wounded, authorities said.

Spokesman Shir Jan Durani said the group was traveling to Dawlat Abad district, about 450 kilometers (270 miles) northwest of the capital, Kabul.

District police commander Bismullah Muslimyar said six children and seven women were among the dead in the blast, which occurred at 6 a.m. after a nighttime police patrol.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai strongly condemned the attack.

"Planting a mine on a road used by civilians and the killing of innocent people represents hostility toward humanity," he said in a statement.