U.S. Soldier, 3 Afghans Killed in Attacks

[sabra]

http://www.guardian.co.uk/worldlatest/story/0,1280,-5334573,00.html

U.S. Soldier, 3 Afghans Killed in Attacks


KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (AP) - A suspected Taliban militant detonated explosives strapped to himself, killing a former militia commander and two others Monday in a southern Afghan city, while a second suicide bomber was thwarted when he blew himself up as he fled police.

Firefights in the country's east, meanwhile, killed a U.S. soldier and wounded three others, while an American special forces chopper was destroyed by fire as it made a hard landing during an offensive. All aboard escaped unhurt.

The violence came amid a reinvigorated insurgency by Taliban-led rebels that has killed more than 1,300 people in the past half year and highlighted the threat still facing Afghanistan as it slowly moves toward democracy.

The two suicide bombings brought the number of such assaults in the past two weeks to five - four of them in the former Taliban stronghold of Kandahar. Suicide attacks have been far less frequent here than in Iraq, although Afghan officials have warned of plots to mimic the tactics of militants in the Mideast.

[daleo]

1. "destroyed by fire as it made a hard landing"

Sounds like a fancy way of saying "shot down".

[rodeodance]

2. may the solders family find peace.

[daleo]

3. I hope they find peace.

I hope everyone does, but truth shading like this only makes it a little harder.