Officials in southern Afghanistan say a roadside bomb has killed 11 civilians.

Authorities say the people were killed Saturday morning when their vehicle struck the device.

Local officials say the group – two children, four women and five men – was thought to be Afghan refugees returning from Pakistan.

The French news agency reports the dead were all family members.

Roadside bombs, planted by militants who have been waging an insurgency against foreign forces for nearly 10 years, are a frequent cause of casualties among civilians in Afghanistan.