At least 10 people including women and children have been killed by a roadside bomb in western Afghanistan, the BBC News reported citing local officials.

Those killed were members of the same family, police said. Police also told the AP that the bomb in Herat had been placed near a trailer being pulled by a motorcycle to transport civilians.

They said that the Taliban had apparently planted the bomb in an attempt to kill Afghan troops. Instead, the device went off next to the makeshift vehicle.

Roadside bombs have been increasingly used by the Taliban in recent years in Afghanistan.