KABUL, Afghanistan — A provincial official says the bodies of eight Afghans abducted last week and then killed by insurgents have been found, dumped along the country's main north-south highway.
Mohammad Ali Ahmadi, deputy governor of Ghazni province, said Tuesday the eight men were civilians snatched off a bus by insurgents during last week's Eid al-Fitr holiday that marked the end of the holy month of Ramadan.
Insurgents regularly pull over buses travelling on the highway from the capital, Kabul, to southern Kandahar province looking for government employees, who they then either shoot or hold for ransom.
The Taliban have said government employees, Afghan troops and those who work for the NATO-led international coalition are targets.
Afghan civilian casualties have spiked this year as the Taliban stepped up their campaign of violence.
