4 US troops die in bomb blast in south Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan – Four American service members were killed Saturday in a bombing in southern Afghanistan, where international forces are stepping up the fight against the Taliban, officials said. A NATO announcement did not give the nationalities of the victims of Saturday's blast, nor specify where in the south they died. However, US officials confirmed they were Americans. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity under rules regarding casualty identification. The latest deaths bring to 69 the number of international service members killed in Afghanistan this month, including 52 Americans. The US-led force is ramping up operations against the Taliban in their southern strongholds, hoping to enable the Afghan government to expand its control in the volatile region. There were conflicting reports of fresh fighting in the south in which civilians were injured. In Kandahar, a man named Abdul Ghafaar said he brought seven children to the city's Mirwais hospital after getting caught in crossfire Friday between NATO and Taliban forces in Sangin, a flash-point town in neighboring Helmand province. Another man, Marjan Agha, said that he also brought injured people from Sangin and that the fight started Friday afternoon after civilians were caught between coalition and insurgent fighters. He said villagers began walking with a white flag toward NATO forces but shots rang out and two people were killed on the spot. NATO spokesmen said they were looking into the reports. — AP