Truck Accident in Afghanistan

A truck carrying Afghan families returning from Pakistan overturned in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, killing 18 people on board, including 10 children, a provincial official said. The accident occurred on the road between Jalalabad and the capital Kabul, according to Abdul Malik Niazay, spokesperson for the governor of Laghman province. "Eighteen people have died, including 10 children, five women and three men. In addition, 29 people have been injured," Niazay said. The vehicle was transporting Afghan families who had been living in Pakistan and were returning to their home country. Deadly traffic crashes are common in Afghanistan, due in part to poor roads after decades of conflict, dangerous driving and a lack of regulation. Authorities in Pakistan have toughened their stance on Afghan migrants and refugees, causing an outflow that often includes families travelling with their belongings in trucks. Since the start of the year, 447,400 Afghans have returned from Pakistan, according to figures from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees and the International Organization for Migration. Last August, a collision between a bus carrying Afghan migrants returning from Iran and two other vehicles in western Afghanistan killed 78 people, including 19 children.