IED kills Afghans
January 27, 2013
An Afghan official said police were driving back to their headquarters in Kandahar when their pick-up truck hit a homemade bomb late on Saturday.
"Our police had an operation in Pero Qalacha area last night. They detained several suspected insurgents," a spokesman for the premier of Kandahar province told the AFP news agency.
"On the way back to the city (center), their vehicle struck an IED (improvised explosive device). Eight police were killed and three suspects that they had detained during the operation were killed," Jawad Faisal said.
Six other officers and one suspect on board a second vehicle were reportedly injured.
A police spokesman said the IED was made up of an artillery shell attached to a detonator and may have been set off remotely.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility but officials said they believed Taliban Islamist militants were behind the bombing.
The Taliban is also believed to have been behind a bombing in Kunduz province earlier on Saturday that killed 10 police officers.
pfd/hc (dpa, AP)