Roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan kills 10 police officers

Roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan kills 10 police officers

2011-12-30 11:54:19 GMT+7 (ICT)

LASHKARGAH, AFGHANISTAN (BNO NEWS) -- Ten police officers were killed in southern Afghanistan on Thursday when a roadside bomb struck their vehicle, provincial officials said.

The attack happened at around 11:30 a.m. local time when an improvised explosive device (IED) struck a vehicle carrying police officers in the Zarghoon area of Nad Ali district, which is located in the southern province of Helmand.

Governor spokesman Daud Ahmadi said the vehicle was returning from a training center when the IED exploded, killing the ten police officers on board. It represented one of the deadliest attacks on Afghan forces so far this year.

Ahmadi said the area is relatively safe, although many other parts of the province are considered to be among the worst in the violence-plagued country. Attacks are currently less frequent because of the winter, making it more difficult for insurgents to move and plant IEDs.

The victims in Thursday's attack were newly trained policemen and had not yet been deployed or stationed in a specific area. A Taliban spokesman claimed responsibility for the attack, which happened hours after a rogue Afghan soldier killed two French troops in the country's east.

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