Bomb blast in Afghanistan
KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP-CP) — A bomb ripped through eight fuel tankers parked outside a U.S.-led coalition base in southern Afghanistan on Friday and injured two drivers, officials and eyewitnesses said.
No Canadians were injured in the blast, according to Canadian Forces spokesman Capt. Francois Giroux.
“There were no Canadians involved,” he said in an interview from Kandahar.
All the tankers were destroyed and clouds of black smoke poured over the Kandahar Airfield, the main base for the coalition in southern Afghanistan, before the fires were extinguished.
Afghan army commander Gen. Mohammed Sarwar said the bomb was believed to have been hidden in one of the tankers. He said the two injured drivers had been rushed to hospital.
U.S. military spokeswoman Sgt. Marina Evans confirmed that some fuel tankers had been hit by a blast and had caught fire, but said the tankers belonged to the Afghan army and had been driving past the base when one hit a landmine.
However, an Associated Press reporter saw the blackened remains of the eight tankers in one of the base’s parking lots next to its outer walls.
The airfield is located about 20 kilometres from where the Canadian provincial reconstruction team (PRT) is based in the city, Giroux said.
The attack comes amid a major surge in violence by Taliban-led rebels that has left more than 1,400 people dead in the past six months.
There are currently about 700 Canadians with the NATO security force in Kabul and about 250 Canadian troops are stationed in Kandahar, some four hours away by road. By early next year, the contingent in Kandahar is expected to number about 1,000.
A small special forces unit from Canada is also operating in the Kandahar area, hunting and killing Taliban and al-Qaida rebels. Canada will also take command of the international operation in the region next year.
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No Canadians were injured in the blast, according to Canadian Forces spokesman Capt. Francois Giroux.
“There were no Canadians involved,” he said in an interview from Kandahar.
All the tankers were destroyed and clouds of black smoke poured over the Kandahar Airfield, the main base for the coalition in southern Afghanistan, before the fires were extinguished.
Afghan army commander Gen. Mohammed Sarwar said the bomb was believed to have been hidden in one of the tankers. He said the two injured drivers had been rushed to hospital.
U.S. military spokeswoman Sgt. Marina Evans confirmed that some fuel tankers had been hit by a blast and had caught fire, but said the tankers belonged to the Afghan army and had been driving past the base when one hit a landmine.
However, an Associated Press reporter saw the blackened remains of the eight tankers in one of the base’s parking lots next to its outer walls.
The airfield is located about 20 kilometres from where the Canadian provincial reconstruction team (PRT) is based in the city, Giroux said.
The attack comes amid a major surge in violence by Taliban-led rebels that has left more than 1,400 people dead in the past six months.
There are currently about 700 Canadians with the NATO security force in Kabul and about 250 Canadian troops are stationed in Kandahar, some four hours away by road. By early next year, the contingent in Kandahar is expected to number about 1,000.
A small special forces unit from Canada is also operating in the Kandahar area, hunting and killing Taliban and al-Qaida rebels. Canada will also take command of the international operation in the region next year.
Link Here
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 5:32 PM
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