Kabul:
Gunmen opened fire on a wedding party in eastern Afghanistan, killing nine people, including the groom, officials said Thursday.
The assailants entered a field where the groom and his family members had gathered late Wednesday night in the remote Dur Baba district and started shooting, said Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, the provincial government spokesman. The attackers also set fire to a nearby house and a car.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. It occurred on the eve of a NATO meeting to discuss the alliance's mission in Afghanistan ahead of a decision by the Obama administration on how many of the 100,000 American troops to pull out of the war in July.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told Thursday's meeting the alliance is on track to hand over responsibility for security to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.
Abdulzai said the cousin of the groom is the chief administrator for Dur Baba district, suggesting that it may have been an insurgent strike against the family for being allied with the government. He said officials are investigating.
The district administrator, Hamisha Gul, said the insurgents briefly held one of the attendees, saying he was an American spy. Gul said he was not at the gathering but had spoken to family members.
Among the dead were the groom, his father and one of his brothers, Gul said. He said about 20 men had gathered to celebrate and organize the wedding ceremony, which was scheduled for Thursday.
Civilian casualties have spiked because of an increase in insurgent attack in recent years. In 2010, at least 2,777 civilians were killed in Afghanistan, a 15 percent increase over the previous year, according to the United Nations. The increase was attributed entirely to insurgent attacks.
The Taliban and other allied groups have regularly targeted both government officials and those seen as in league with the Afghan administration or international forces. The insurgents have said they do not consider these people civilians.
Afghan and international forces also continue to record more casualties. On Thursday, a NATO service member was killed in a bomb attack in the south, the coalition said. The latest death makes 18 international troops killed so far this month.
Fighting typically rises in the warmer months in Afghanistan and June 2010 was the deadliest month of the war for the country's military allies, with 103 international troops killed.
The assailants entered a field where the groom and his family members had gathered late Wednesday night in the remote Dur Baba district and started shooting, said Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, the provincial government spokesman. The attackers also set fire to a nearby house and a car.
No one immediately claimed responsibility for the attack. It occurred on the eve of a NATO meeting to discuss the alliance's mission in Afghanistan ahead of a decision by the Obama administration on how many of the 100,000 American troops to pull out of the war in July.
NATO Secretary-General Anders Fogh Rasmussen told Thursday's meeting the alliance is on track to hand over responsibility for security to Afghan forces by the end of 2014.
Abdulzai said the cousin of the groom is the chief administrator for Dur Baba district, suggesting that it may have been an insurgent strike against the family for being allied with the government. He said officials are investigating.
The district administrator, Hamisha Gul, said the insurgents briefly held one of the attendees, saying he was an American spy. Gul said he was not at the gathering but had spoken to family members.
Among the dead were the groom, his father and one of his brothers, Gul said. He said about 20 men had gathered to celebrate and organize the wedding ceremony, which was scheduled for Thursday.
Civilian casualties have spiked because of an increase in insurgent attack in recent years. In 2010, at least 2,777 civilians were killed in Afghanistan, a 15 percent increase over the previous year, according to the United Nations. The increase was attributed entirely to insurgent attacks.
The Taliban and other allied groups have regularly targeted both government officials and those seen as in league with the Afghan administration or international forces. The insurgents have said they do not consider these people civilians.
Afghan and international forces also continue to record more casualties. On Thursday, a NATO service member was killed in a bomb attack in the south, the coalition said. The latest death makes 18 international troops killed so far this month.
Fighting typically rises in the warmer months in Afghanistan and June 2010 was the deadliest month of the war for the country's military allies, with 103 international troops killed.
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