KANDAHAR, Afghanistan, 24 October 2005 — Two Afghan experts working for a British-based mine- clearing agency were killed and six wounded yesterday when a bomb tore through their truck in southern Afghanistan, the organization said.
The bomb was detonated by remote control as the vehicle was passing in the volatile southern city of Kandahar, HALO Trust regional director Mohammad Ashraf said.
“Two people were killed and six others were wounded,” Ashraf said. They were all Afghan employees of the organization and had been returning from a mine clearance operation.
The wounded were evacuated to a nearby US military base, he said. Ashraf did not say who might have detonated the bomb but similar acts have been blamed on remnants of the Taleban who are waging an insurgency against the US-backed government of President Hamid Karzai. Afghanistan, which has endured decades of wars and civil strife, is one of the most mined countries in world.
More than 10 million mines — most of them planted during the decade-long Russian invasion — are believed to be buried around the country.
Earthquake Kills Five
An earthquake hit southeastern Afghanistan yesterday, killing five people and affecting six villages in the province of Paktika, a Defense Ministry official said.
“The quake, according to local officials, hit Shinkai district at around five o’clock in the morning (0030 GMT),” said Ahmad Zahir Murad, a press official at the ministry. “The initial report says that five dead bodies have been recovered from the rubble, six people have been wounded and six villages have been affected,” he added. An assessment team has been dispatched to the area to get more details, he said.
