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A magnetic bomb placed on a truck exploded and destroyed 21 other trucks transporting supplies and fuel for NATO's U.S.-led occupation of Afghanistan early Wednesday morning, local officials report. Taliban insurgents attacked the convoy in a previously secure northern region, authorities said.
The truck convoy had been parked overnight in the northern Afghan province of Samangan after crossing from Uzbekistan.
The Washington Post reports that Samangan straddles a highway that has been used in recent months as the key overland supply line for foreign forces after Pakistan barred NATO supply convoys from its territory as a protest over the killing of 24 Pakistani troops in a U.S. air attack on two border outposts in November. Although Islamabad has lifted the blockade in recent weeks, foreign troops still rely on the northern Afghan region as a route for supplies from Central Asia.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) spokesman Brigadier General Gunter Katz said insurgent attacks have been increasing.
"Generally, in the past 12 weeks, we have a slight increase, 10 per cent, of insurgent attacks on Afghan security forces and international troops," Katz told a news conference.
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Dear Common Dreams reader, It’s been nearly 30 years since I co-founded Common Dreams with my late wife, Lina Newhouser. We had the radical notion that journalism should serve the public good, not corporate profits. It was clear to us from the outset what it would take to build such a project. No paid advertisements. No corporate sponsors. No millionaire publisher telling us what to think or do. Many people said we wouldn't last a year, but we proved those doubters wrong. Together with a tremendous team of journalists and dedicated staff, we built an independent media outlet free from the constraints of profits and corporate control. Our mission has always been simple: To inform. To inspire. To ignite change for the common good. Building Common Dreams was not easy. Our survival was never guaranteed. When you take on the most powerful forces—Wall Street greed, fossil fuel industry destruction, Big Tech lobbyists, and uber-rich oligarchs who have spent billions upon billions rigging the economy and democracy in their favor—the only bulwark you have is supporters who believe in your work. But here’s the urgent message from me today. It's never been this bad out there. And it's never been this hard to keep us going. At the very moment Common Dreams is most needed, the threats we face are intensifying. We need your support now more than ever. We don't accept corporate advertising and never will. We don't have a paywall because we don't think people should be blocked from critical news based on their ability to pay. Everything we do is funded by the donations of readers like you. When everyone does the little they can afford, we are strong. But if that support retreats or dries up, so do we. Will you donate now to make sure Common Dreams not only survives but thrives? —Craig Brown, Co-founder |
A magnetic bomb placed on a truck exploded and destroyed 21 other trucks transporting supplies and fuel for NATO's U.S.-led occupation of Afghanistan early Wednesday morning, local officials report. Taliban insurgents attacked the convoy in a previously secure northern region, authorities said.
The truck convoy had been parked overnight in the northern Afghan province of Samangan after crossing from Uzbekistan.
The Washington Post reports that Samangan straddles a highway that has been used in recent months as the key overland supply line for foreign forces after Pakistan barred NATO supply convoys from its territory as a protest over the killing of 24 Pakistani troops in a U.S. air attack on two border outposts in November. Although Islamabad has lifted the blockade in recent weeks, foreign troops still rely on the northern Afghan region as a route for supplies from Central Asia.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) spokesman Brigadier General Gunter Katz said insurgent attacks have been increasing.
"Generally, in the past 12 weeks, we have a slight increase, 10 per cent, of insurgent attacks on Afghan security forces and international troops," Katz told a news conference.
* * *

# # #
A magnetic bomb placed on a truck exploded and destroyed 21 other trucks transporting supplies and fuel for NATO's U.S.-led occupation of Afghanistan early Wednesday morning, local officials report. Taliban insurgents attacked the convoy in a previously secure northern region, authorities said.
The truck convoy had been parked overnight in the northern Afghan province of Samangan after crossing from Uzbekistan.
The Washington Post reports that Samangan straddles a highway that has been used in recent months as the key overland supply line for foreign forces after Pakistan barred NATO supply convoys from its territory as a protest over the killing of 24 Pakistani troops in a U.S. air attack on two border outposts in November. Although Islamabad has lifted the blockade in recent weeks, foreign troops still rely on the northern Afghan region as a route for supplies from Central Asia.
NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) spokesman Brigadier General Gunter Katz said insurgent attacks have been increasing.
"Generally, in the past 12 weeks, we have a slight increase, 10 per cent, of insurgent attacks on Afghan security forces and international troops," Katz told a news conference.
* * *

# # #