Attacks in southern Afghanistan kill at least 18
By | Associated Press – 1 hr 27 mins ago
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) — A suicide bomber detonated his explosives near a police checkpoint and a bank in southern Afghanistan on Saturday, one of two attacks in the heartland of the insurgency that killed 18 people over 24 hours.
Separately, a NATO service member was killed by insurgents in the country's east, according to a military statement.
No group immediately claimed responsibility for any of the attacks, but Taliban fighters have escalated their activity as U.S.-led foreign forces reduce their presence in the country, having handed over primary responsibility for security to Afghan troops.
Javed Faisal, a spokesman for the provincial governor, initially said the suicide bomber was in a car that was being searched by police, but later said new information indicated the bomber had been on foot. Along with the branch building of the New Kabul Bank, several small shops and vehicles were damaged.
Witness Shah Wali had just stepped out of a taxi to go to the bank when the attacker struck. "I saw a man and a vehicle on the road, and while I was fixing my shoelaces I heard a loud explosion. I don't know if it was the vehicle which exploded or the man standing there," Wali said.
Faisal said at least six people died — four of them civilians, one police officer and one private security guard. Another 24 people were wounded, most of them civilians.
Taliban spokesmen did not immediately respond to requests for comment. The militant group is especially strong in southern Afghanistan, which is dominated by the ethnic Pashtun community whose members form the bulk of the insurgency in the country.
Another 12 people were killed in an ambush involving a roadside bomb in Sangin district in Helmand province, also in the south, on Friday evening, said Omer Zwak, a spokesman for the provincial governor. Sangin is the scene of an ongoing operation by Afghan forces against the Taliban.
Zwak said 11 men and one woman died in the attack, and that the vehicle also was hit by several rounds of gunfire. Such attacks typically target security forces, but, in this case, "the victims are all civilians and had no link with the government," Zwak said.
Afghan and coalition officials have warned that the Taliban would intensify the tempo of their attacks following the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, as they try to take advantage of the two or three months left of good weather before the harsh Afghan winter sets in. The traditional fighting period lasts from March until the end of October.
The NATO service member died in "a direct fire attack by enemy forces in eastern Afghanistan" on Saturday, according to a statement from the military alliance. The statement did not give any further details on the person killed. Mostly U.S. troops operate in eastern Afghanistan.
There are currently about 100,000 troops from 48 countries in Afghanistan with the U.S.-led International Security Assistance Force, 60,000 of them American. By the end of this year, the NATO force will be halved, and all foreign combat troops are expected to be gone by the end of next year.
Because of the drawdown, much is riding on the abilities of the fledging Afghan security forces, which now number about 352,000.
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