Afghan Civilians Suffer from Lack of Social Services

(29 September 09-RV) A roadside bomb struck a passenger bus outside Afghanistan's southern city of Kandahar today, killing 30 civilians including women and children. The blast comes ahead of a meeting today between NATO chief Anders Fogh Rasmussen and US President Barack Obama, the first in a series of closed-door meetings to reassess U.S. strategy in Afghanistan. International Committee of the Red Cross spokesperson in Kabul, Bijan Frederic Farnoudi, says more civilians are negatively affected by the lack of social services than by the violence.