Explosion hits NATO convoy in eastern Afghanistan, no word on casualties

Explosion hits NATO convoy in eastern Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan — An explosion tore through a NATO convoy traveling on a road in eastern Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said, the latest attack targeting international forces. There was no immediate word on casualties.

Local government spokesman Mubarez Zadran said a suicide car bomber struck the convoy as it rolled through Khost province’s Mando Zayi district. He said foreign troops quickly cordoned off the road.

The international force confirmed the Khost explosion but spokeswoman Lt. Cmdr. Katie Kendrick said the convoy apparently hit a roadside bomb. She said no casualties were immediately reported.

Insurgents have intensified attacks across the country as 30,000 more American troops arrive to try to turn around the 9-year-old war against the Taliban and stabilize the Afghan government.

Afghan soldiers foiled an attempted suicide attack on an army base Saturday morning in the southern province of Zabul, killing a man approaching the entrance wearing a suicide vest and capturing his two accomplices, the government said.

Guards at the base gate noticed the man approaching at about 7 a.m. and shot him dead, the Ministry of Defense said in a statement. It said the soldiers found the man was wearing a vest full of explosives and was carrying hand grenades and an AK-47 assault rifle.

Soon after, soldiers captured two other insurgents armed with another rifle and a rocket-propelled grenade launcher, the ministry said.