KABUL, 11 February 2006 — Eight Afghan soldiers were killed yesterday and four Canadian soldiers lightly hurt in a series of roadside bomb attacks in insurgency-hit Afghanistan, government and military officials said. A US soldier, meanwhile, became the third to die in Afghanistan this year when his vehicle overturned during a combat patrol. The other two were killed in 2006 died in hostile fire.
The Afghan soldiers were killed in two separate blasts in eastern Kunar province early yesterday. Two were killed when their vehicle hit a roadside bomb, Defense Ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammed Zahir Azimi said. A convoy sent to their aid was hit by another explosive device and six more soldiers were killed, provincial governor Asadullah Wafa said. “Seven other soldiers were wounded in the two blasts,” the governor said. It was not clear if the explosions were caused by land mines or remote-controlled bombs, Azimi said.
Four Canadian soldiers were slightly wounded in volatile southern Kandahar province in a roadside bomb attack late Thursday, Canadian forces spokesman Maj. Dany Laferriere told AFP. The troops received “bumps and bruises” when their armored vehicle was lightly damaged, he said.
