New Delhi, Sep 22 (IANS/EFE): At least four members of a family, including two children and two women, died and 13 others were injured when a rocket hit their home in the province of Khost, in southeastern Afghanistan, an official reported Monday.

The incident occurred late Sunday when the rocket, apparently fired by insurgents, struck their house in the district of Bak, local administration official Abdul Hayee Zazi told the Afghan AIP news agency.

The wounded include several children and women of the same family, according to the agency.

The Afghan conflict is going through one of its bloodiest periods since the invasion by the US, which led to the fall of the Taliban regime 12 years ago.

In the first six months of this year, 1,564 civilians lost their lives, 17 percent more than in the first half of 2013, while the number of wounded rose to 3,289, an increase of 28 percent.

In 2011, international troops started to gradually withdraw and transfer security tasks to the Afghan army and police.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) will conclude its mission in the Asian country by the end of 2014, while the US has announced it would maintain 9,800 troops in the country until the end of 2016.