Afghan Civilian Deaths Continue Before Election

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Source: NYT

August 6, 2009
Afghan Civilian Deaths Continue Before Election
By DEXTER FILKINS

KABUL — Six civilians were killed Wednesday by a roadside bomb that bore the hallmarks of Taliban militants, while American forces killed four people in southern Afghanistan who residents said were also civilians.

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In the first attack, a roadside bomb killed two tribal elders and their four bodyguards Wednesday morning in the Pachir Agam district of Nangahar Province in eastern Afghanistan. The elders were on their way to a meeting to discuss road security. All six of the men were killed instantly.

A spokesman for the Taliban, going by the name of Zabiullah Mujahid, denied the group’s involvement in the attack. But roadside bombs are increasingly the group’s weapon of choice to kill American and Afghan soldiers. Nearly as often, the bombs kill civilians as well.

In the second episode, American officials said a helicopter killed four armed men Wednesday morning as they traveled on motorcycles through an open area in the Argundab district of Kandahar Province. The men were carrying plastic jugs in an area where roadside bombs are common, suggesting that they were carrying explosive materials, according to a communiqué released by the American-led force here. The Americans said that the men were killed by bullets and rockets and that no bombs were dropped.

Read more: http://www.nytimes.com/2009/08/06/world/asia/06afghan.html