Slightly EFR
A suspected car bomb has killed at least three international peacekeepers and injured another eight in an attack on a bus in the Afghan capital, Kabul. The force of the explosion threw the vehicle off the road, about five kilometres (three miles) east of the city centre near a base used by German and Dutch troops of the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf). A German Defence Ministry spokesman in Berlin confirmed the deaths and said a total of about 30 people had been wounded, including some pedestrians, Reuters reported. US military sources said the attack was carried out by a suicide bomber, who drove a taxi filled with explosives towards the bus then blew it up.
| That's 'cause one thing they don't want kept in Kabul is peace... |
The peacekeepers, all of whom are believed to have been German, were being driven from the airport to their main camp. Isaf is currently led by Germany and the Netherlands. The BBC's Kylie Morris in Kabul says the road where the explosion occurred is busy and lined with stalls. Some of the casualties are thought to have been seriously wounded and there is a possibility that the number of dead may rise further. Kabul police said up to six people had been killed but Major Sarah Wood, spokeswoman for Isaf, said she could not confirm the death toll. She said an investigation was under way to establish the cause of the explosion.
| Hek's boyz finally pulled one off. |
British and French Isaf forces blocked the main road to Jalalabad and a German helicopter flew to the scene to deliver medical assistance and to evacuate casualties. Witnesses said they saw bloodstains and shards from windows of the bus on the highway. Our correspondent says it is too early to say who was responsible for the blast, but a local Afghan official has blamed the attack on remnants of al-Qaeda or Taleban. Anti-government forces have been issuing pamphlets calling on Afghans to rid their country of the peacekeeping forces. And suspected Taleban fighters have been stepping up attacks in recent weeks, particularly in the south and east of Afghanistan. Saturday's explosion was the second violent incident involving German peacekeepers in Kabul in recent weeks. On 29 May, a German soldier was killed and another wounded when their vehicle hit a landmine near Kabul. Saturday's attack against the peacekeepers is the deadliest assault on the Isaf force since it arrived in Afghanistan to support the government of Hamid Karzai after the removal of the Taleban.
| That's only because most of the other attempts have failed. The Bad Guys actually have a spectacular failure rate... |
Despite growing evidence of the regrouping of Taleban fighters near the Pakistani border, there has until now been little disruption to the daily life of Kabul. |