17 killed, over 50 wounded in market place blasts in Afghanistan's Bamyan

BAMYAN, Afghanistan - At least 17 people were killed and over 50 others wounded after twin explosions hit a market place in Bamyan city, capital of Afghanistan's central Bamyan province, on Tuesday, authorities confirmed.

"The latest figures indicated 17 people, including a traffic police officer, were killed and over 50 wounded. Several wounded people were in critical condition," an official from provincial health directorate told Xinhua anonymously.

The death toll could rise, the official added.

Latif Azimi, provincial government spokesman, told Xinhua earlier that the explosions came in a very short span of time in the main crowded market place of the city roughly at 4:30 pm local time.

He said the blasts were caused by improvised bombs.

Unofficial sources said the security forces arrested two suspected men following the incident.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack so far. The Taliban militant group denied its involvement in the blasts, which happened in the relatively peaceful province, about 200 km west of the country's capital Kabul.

Afghan civilians continue to bear the brunt of armed conflicts as more than 2,110 civilians were killed and over 3,820 others wounded due to fightings in the country in the first nine months of this year, according to figures of the United Nations Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).