WORLD> Asia-Pacific
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WORLD> Asia-Pacific
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Afghan blast kills 4 GIs in deadliest month for US
(Agencies)
Updated: 2009-07-21 13:50 It was unclear whether the blast occurred near the area of eastern Afghanistan where Pfc. Bowe R. Bergdahl, 23, was taken captive June 30. Bergdahl appeared on a Taliban video posted on the Internet over the weekend -- a move denounced by the US command as a violation of international law. Also Monday, the British Ministry of Defense announced that a British soldier was killed the day before by a roadside bomb during a foot patrol in Helmand province. Roadside bombs now account for more than two-thirds of all casualties among the international force as the Taliban demonstrate greater skill in manufacturing and planting the explosives. Bombings rose by 25 percent in the first four months of 2009 over the same period last year, and the US command expects them to increase 50 percent this year to 5,700 -- up from 3,800 last year. The increased threat from roadside bombs and Afghanistan's formidable terrain of high mountains and deserts have forced the international military force to rely heavily on aircraft to transport personnel and supplies around the country. The increased tempo of the conflict has strained air assets and may have been behind a series of aircraft accidents in recent weeks. In the latest mishap, a British Tornado GR4 fighter jet crashed Monday on takeoff inside the Kandahar Airfield, but the two crewmen managed to eject safely, according to a NATO spokesman Capt. Ruben Hoornveld. British officials said the crash was not a result of hostile fire but the cause was still under investigation. The crash occurred one day after a Russian-owned civilian Mi-8 helicopter slammed into the tarmac at the same base shortly after takeoff, killing 16 people on board. Two Americans died Saturday when their US Air Force F-15E Strike Eagle fighter jet crashed in central Afghanistan. A US helicopter made a "hard landing" the same day, injuring several soldiers. US officials said neither incident was due to hostile fire. Taliban militants shot down a Moldovan-owned Mi-6 transport helicopter last week in southern Afghanistan, killing six Ukrainian civilians on board and an Afghan child on the ground. Earlier in July, two Canadian soldiers and one British trooper were killed in a helicopter crash in Zabul province. Officials said the crash did not appear to be caused by Taliban fire. Also Monday, officials reported that at least a dozen Afghan civilians had been killed in violent incidents. In the northern province of Kunduz on Sunday, German soldiers fired on a pickup truck approaching at high speed and suspected of carrying Taliban fighters. Provincial Gov. Mohammad Omar said three civilians were killed, but German authorities said one died. Defense Ministry spokesman Christian Dienst said in Berlin that the driver ignored warning shots before troops fired at the vehicle's engine to disable it. Three Afghans were injured and a fourth fled, Dienst said. Prosecutors in Potsdam, where the German military's mission command center is headquartered, said they were examining evidence to determine whether to open a criminal investigation. In the western province of Farah, a van full of civilians struck a roadside bomb Sunday, killing 11 people on board, including a child and his mother, said Mohammad Younis Rasouli, the deputy governor. The bomb was probably intended for Afghan or international troops.
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