Authorities say a bomb has exploded at a market in northern Afghanistan, killing nine people, including a local official.

The Ministry of Interior says the bomb went off on Monday morning inside a shop in a market in Faryab province's Ghormuch district. The ministry's statement says the nine dead included a council member from a neighboring province.

The ministry says it has no other details.

In a separate statement Monday, the ministry said police killed 18 insurgents in operations across the country over the past 24 hours.