Bicycle bomb kills 8 in Afghanistan, police say

A bomb concealed on a bicycle killed eight people Wednesday in southern Afghanistan, police said.

An additional 38 people were injured in the blast in the district of Nahr-e-Sarraj, just north of Lashkar Gah in Helmand province. Kamaluddin, the deputy provincial police chief who uses only one name, said a higher original figure of 17 dead was incorrect and had resulted from a miscommunication.

The bomb exploded near people who had gathered to receive free vegetable seeds provided by the British government as part of a program to encourage them not to plant opium poppy, provincial government spokesman Daoud Ahmadi said.

There were no immediate claims of responsibility for the bombing.