US-led soldier killed in Afghanistan

Press TV, Thu Oct 21, 2010 9:31AM

One US-led soldier has been killed in eastern Afghanistan as Taliban fighters step up their attacks against foreign military forces in the war-torn country.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force said in a statement on Thursday that the soldier lost his life in a militant attack, DPA reported.

Earlier on Wednesday, one US-led soldier and one British soldier were killed in two separate attacks in southern Afghanistan.

Meanwhile, the Afghan Interior Ministry said Thursday a roadside bomb blast claimed the lives of four Afghan policemen in the Keshk-e-Kuhna district in the western province of Herat on Wednesday.

Another policeman was killed in a suspected Taliban ambush in Herat's Ghoryan district on Wednesday, the ministry added.

More than 150,000 US-led troops have been stationed in war-ravaged Afghanistan and the number has steadily expanded since the US-led invasion of the country in 2001.

Western public opinion is growing increasingly tired of the war and mounting casualties as the conflict pushes into its 10th year.

RZS/MRS/AGB/HRF

Blast kills four Afghan soldiers

 Press TV, Thursday October 21, 2010,12:50PM

Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers (file photo) Four Afghan National Army (ANA) soldiers have been killed after a bomb blast targeted their vehicle in the western province of Herat.

An officer also sustained injuries during the Wednesday attack, which took place in Darzak village of Kashek Kohna district, according to a statement released by the Afghan Interior Ministry on Thursday.

Roadside bombs, or Improvised Explosive Devices, are by far the most lethal weapon Taliban militants use against the Afghan forces, foreign troops as well as civilians.

Ill-equipped and under-trained Afghan army soldiers have largely fallen victim to the increasing Taliban attacks in both urban and rural parts of the country.

MP/AKM/MGH

Blast kills 9 civilians in Afghanistan

Press TV, Wed Oct 20, 2010 7:26PM

At least nine people were killed when a school bus carrying female students was hit by a roadside bomb in southwestern Afghanistan on Wednesday. An explosion in southwestern Afghanistan has killed at least nine civilians as security situation continues to deteriorate in the war-ravaged country.

The incident occurred after a civilian bus hit a Taliban-style roadside bomb in a district of southwestern Nimroz Province.

The bomb, which was planted to target military forces, killed civilians, with local sources saying that most of the victims were female students.

"It was a powerful bomb that killed most of the innocent civilians immediately," Reuters quoted a regional police official as saying.

Violence has recently spread from Afghanistan's south to its northern and western areas despite the presence of some 150,000 foreign troops in the country.

The United Nations says more than 1,200 civilians have been killed in the first half of 2010.

Furthermore, hundreds of civilians have lost their lives in US-led airstrikes and ground operations in various parts of Afghanistan over the past few months, causing Afghans to become increasingly outraged over the seemingly endless number of deadly assaults.

The situation is adding fuel to the fire of anti-US sentiment in Afghanistan and the rest of the troubled region.

JR/CS/MMN