Officials say that a roadside bomb attack in Ghazni province, south of the Afghan capital Kabul, has killed 18 people on their way to a wedding.
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They said nearly all of the dead were women and children travelling in a minibus which was completely destroyed.
Taliban militants have denied any responsibility for the attack.
Afghan civilians are often hit by roadside bombs used
In June, Nato handed over security for the whole of Afghanistan to Afghan forces, but some 97,000 Nato troops remain.
Reports say the attack on Sunday happened in a poor and deeply traditional Pashtun area in the east of Ghazni province.
The minibus, tightly packed with people on their way to a wedding, was destroyed by a roadside bomb.
Fourteen women, three men and a child were killed, deputy provincial police chief Col Asadullah Ensafi was quoted as saying.
Only five of the 23 people on board, all of them women, are believed to have survived. Two remain in a critical condition.