Official says suicide car bomber attacks police checkpoint in southern Afghanistan, killing 8

Wounded Afghani men and children lie on the ground in a tent after a deadly attack targeted a checkpoint, in Lashkar Gah, capital of the southern Helmand province, Afghanistan, Tuesday, March 10, 2015. A series of bombings across Afghanistan killed at least 13 people and wounded dozens Tuesday, authorities said. Afghanistan's army has been fighting to clear large parts of Helmand of Taliban militants. (AP Photo/Abdul Khaliq) (The Associated Press)

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – An official says a suicide car bombing at a police checkpoint in southern Afghanistan has killed eight people.

Omar Zwak, the spokesman for the governor of Helmand province, says the bomber attacked the checkpoint Tuesday on the outskirts of Lashkar Gah as police checked vehicles entering and leaving the city. He says the dead included six civilians and two police officers.

Alam Yar, a doctor at a hospital in Lashkar Gah, says 20 wounded people and four dead bodies have been brought there.

Afghanistan's army has been fighting to clear large parts of Helmand of Taliban militants. The insurgents have retaliated in recent days with a series of suicide attacks in towns and villages across the province.