AFGHANISTAN: Suicide bomber attacks Nato convoy in Kandahar city

A suicide bomber went off just after a convoy of NATO troops passed in the southern Afghan city of Kandahar on Tuesday (October 3, 2006). There were no report of casualties among the NATO troops, a Reuters witness said. Canada has 2,300 soldiers based in Kandahar, the scene of recent clashes with Taliban militants. The Canadian troops are part of a NATO-led force. "Just a few minutes ago, when the convoy of the foreigner's troops was passing by this road, I saw a man on a motorbike hit against the second vehicle at the foreign convoy. You can see his body and fire and smoke in the foreign vehicle. I don't know if some other people were killed," said witness Baryali Khan. Last Friday (October 29), a Canadian soldier was killed in a bomb blast during a foot patrol in the province of Kandahar, the Defence Department said in a statement. The soldier -- the 37th member of the Canadian Armed Forces to die in Afghanistan since late 2001 -- was killed about 25 km (16 miles) west of the city of Kandahar. Meanwhile, NATO will assume responsibility for security across the whole of Afghanistan from Thursday (October 5) when it takes command in the east from U.S.-led coalition forces, a senior NATO official said on Tuesday. NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) already commands forces in the north, west and south, as well as in the capital, Kabul. On Thursday it takes command of 10,000-12,000 U.S. troops in the east. With the inclusion of the U.S. troops in the east, who will join the overall ISAF organisation, the NATO force in Afghanistan will number between 32,000 and 33,000, a NATO official said. The Afghan mission is the alliance's biggest ground operation in its history. Two U.S. soldiers and an Afghan soldier were killed in a clash with insurgents in the eastern Afghan province of Kunar, the U.S.-led coalition force said on Tuesday. Three U.S. soldiers were also wounded in the fighting late on Monday in the province's Pech district.

ITN Source | October 3, 2006

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