- KABUL (Online) - A spokesman
for the Taliban Thursday claimed that Taliban forces shot down a US military
helicopter in Zabul province, killing 10 people on board.
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- Abdul Lateef Hakeem, however, denied a claim by the Afghan
authorities about Taliban fighters' involvement in Jalalabad bomb blasts,
saying that the blasts were an outcome of fighting amongst warring Afghan
groups.
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- According to BBC Radio, Rahimullah Yousafzai, an expert
of Afghan affairs, said that the American authorities did not respond to
the Taliban's claim, which had also yet to be confirmed by independent
sources.
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- "The Taliban forces have made several claims today.
They say they have attacked a US military convoy in Uruzgan, destroyed
four vehicles and killed a number of people", he said.
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- He further said that another US military convoy was ambushed
in Zabul and their guerrillas inflicted heavy loss on the US forces.
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- About the veracity of the claims, Rahimullah said that
there was some truth in them. "The causalities may be less than what
is being claimed", he argued.
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- He, however, said that such incidents are taking place
all across the country.
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- He said in fact, it is a media and propaganda war, in
which both the sides often make false and exaggerated claims.
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- Two French peacekeepers wounded by mine explosion
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- Two French peacekeepers were injured when one of them
stepped on a mine at a helicopter landing zone north of the Afghan capital,
the international force said.
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- It was unclear if the anti-personnel mine was a leftover
from decades of war here or a freshly laid charge.
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- The two soldiers, who weren't identified, were evacuated
to a German field hospital in Kabul, the NATO-led force said in a statement.
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- One underwent surgery but lost his right foot. The other
suffered minor injuries to his head and an arm. Both were out of danger,
AP reports.
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- The blast occurred as a group of French soldiers, dropped
by a Turkish helicopter near a main road some 20 kilometers (12 miles)
north of Kabul, took up position for an undisclosed mission.
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- "The most severely injured soldier stepped on the
mine. The second soldier was hit by debris thrown up by the explosion,"
the statement said.
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- Other soldiers were ordered to stay still until mine
clearers painstakingly opened up a path to evacuate them. It was unclear
if they found any other charges.
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- The force said the landing zone was approved for use
by the International Security Assistance Force, which as Turkish, Dutch
and German helicopters.
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- "However an investigation is now ongoing as to the
presence of the mine in that location," it said.
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- The 6,400-strong force, which patrols Kabul and the northern
city of Kunduz, has suffered several casualties because of mine blasts.
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- Two Canadian soldiers died last October when a mine blew
up under their jeep south of Kabul. Officials believe it was deliberately
laid. Two Germans were killed by a mine in May last year.
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- Three soldiers one Canadian, one British and one Norwegian
have died in suicide and rocket attacks this year.
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- The force is focused on the capital Kabul and the northern
city of Kunduz. NATO members on Monday pledged to expand into four more
provincial capitals in the north to help protect planned September elections.
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- France has 650 soldiers in Kabul acting as peacekeeping
and trainers for Afghanistan's new national army. An extra 300 are to arrive
in August, when a French general takes command of the international force.
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- http://www.paktribune.com/news/index.php?id=69444
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