A car bomb targeted a US-led coalition convoy in southern Afghanistan on Friday leaving two civilians dead and two soldiers wounded, while a Taliban ambush on police left six officers dead, officials said. The car bomb hit the convoy in Helmand provinceÂ’s Sangin district, said Sgt 1st Class Dean Welch, a coalition spokesman. The bombing left two civilians dead and two soldiers with light wounds, Welch said. A coalition vehicle caught fire after the blast, he said. In HelmandÂ’s Marja district, Taliban militants ambushed police on Thursday, leaving six officers dead and two others wounded, said Muhammad Hussein, the provincial police chief.
Two police vehicles were also damaged in the attack, Hussein said. There were no reports of Taliban casualties. Violence has soared in Afghanistan in the last several weeks. More than 3,300 people have died in insurgency-related violence this year, according to a count based on numbers from Afghan and Western officials. |