Suicide bomber killed, 4 injured in attack on US convoy, NATO comment on op
(17 Sep 2006) 1. Various of French NATO forces arriving at the scene of the attack 2. Turkish NATO forces arriving by foot at the scene 3. US military vehicle and U.S. soldiers at the scene 4. Villagers watching 5. Wide of more Turkish NATO forces arriving at the scene 6. Wide of NATO headquarters in Kabul 7. Lieutenant General David Richards, NATO forces' commander in Afghanistan arriving 8. Cutaway of journalists 9. SOUNDBITE: (English) Lieutenant General David Richards, NATO forces' commander in Afghanistan: "Afghan, ISAF and coalition forces have now successfully completed the clearance of the Panjwai area, forcing the insurgents forces to abandon their positions and I would like to pay special tribute now to the bravery of all the soldiers concerned in this demanding operation and in particular the leadership of Canadian Brigadier General David Fraser." 10. Wide of the press STORYLINE: Two suicide bombers attacked Canadian and U.S. troops in Afghanistan on Sunday, killing two civilians and wounding six soldiers, officials said. The suicide attacks came as NATO announced a "successful completion" of its anti-Taliban offensive aimed at driving militants out of their safe heavens in the insurgency-wracked south. A youth carrying explosives jumped in front of a U.S. military convoy east of Kabul, killing a bystander and wounding three American soldiers on Sunday, Afghan police officials said. The youth was also killed. Earlier in the day, another suicide bomber ploughed his explosive-laden vehicle into a Canadian military convoy in southern Afghanistan, killing one civilian and wounding three soldiers. The bomber, who also died in the blast, targeted the convoy west of Kandahar city, said a police official at the scene. Eight civilians were also hurt in the blast, police said. Lieutenant General David Richards, the head of the 20-thousand strong NATO-led force, called the two week- long operation to flush out rebels from three areas of southern Afghanistan a "significant success". The insurgents were forced to abandon their positions and reconstruction and development efforts would soon begin in the former Taliban heartland, he said. Alliance officials have said that over 500 militants were killed during the two week long operations, centered mainly in Panjwai, Pashmul and Zhari districts. Taliban and other Islamic extremist groups, including al-Qaida, are known to operate in the eastern region, especially in the area bordering Pakistan where the reach of the government is weak and militants find sanctuaries. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter: / ap_archive Facebook: / aparchives Instagram: / apnews You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...
