KABUL (AP) – A suicide bomber blew himself up in a busy market district Thursday in central Afghanistan, killing at least 16 people and wounding more than a dozen, provincial officials said.

The attack occurred in the town of Dihrawud, in Uruzgan province, as the area was packed with shoppers and vendors gathered for the weekly bazaar.

Provincial Gov. Asadullah Hamdan said 16 people were killed and 13 wounded in the blast. Police chief Gen. Juma Gul Himat said those killed included three children. Several shops were destroyed.

The attack came a day after the U.N. released a report showing that the number of Afghan civilians killed in war-related violence was at its highest level last year, and suicide bombings and other attacks blamed on insurgents were the leading cause of death.