Afghan officials say a roadside bomb has killed two American soldiers in northern Afghanistan.
Officials said the troops were in a vehicle that hit the bomb in the Baghi Shirkat area of Kunduz province Wednesday. U.S. and Afghan forces were conducting an operation in the area during which at least 12 militants, including two Taliban commanders, were killed. No other details were provided.
The latest casualties follow the assassination of Haji Abjul Jabar, the Arghandab district governor in southern Kandahar on Tuesday. Officials say aremote-controlled roadside bomb killed Jabar, his son and a bodyguard. Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned his murder and called it a plot by the enemies of the Afghan people. Jabar was considered a key partner for NATO the U.S. as the coalition implements a plan to reconstruct and stabilize Kandahar province, the spiritual homeland of the the Taliban.
NATO reported Wednesday that international forces recently conducted a large scale operation against Taliban insurgents in Shah Wali Kot district, north of Kandahar City. NATO said after five days of heavy fighting, the combined force was able to push the insurgents out of the area.
Also Tuesday, militant attacks killed five NATO coalition troops, including a Polish soldier. A total of 18 Polish troops have died in Afghanistan and the country's defense minister said Wednesday he wants to withdraw all Polish forces from Afghanistan by 2013.
Some information for this report was provided by AP and AFP.