12 Afghan civilians, 1 NATO service member killed

[August 06, 2010]  KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Roadside bombings killed 12 Afghan civilians and a NATO service member in increasingly volatile eastern Afghanistan, officials said Friday.

NATO did not disclose the nationality or provide other details about the death of the service member Friday.

Nine civilians were killed Thursday by a remote-controlled bomb in the Bar Kunar district of Kunar province, according to Gen. Khalilullah Zaiyi, provincial police chief. Three civilians were killed and others were wounded in a different blast Thursday in the Qarabagh district of Ghazni province, NATO said.

In the south, NATO said Afghan-led security forces detained several suspected insurgents Thursday in Helmand province where they were tracking two Taliban district commanders in charge of Garmser and Naway-i-Barakzayi districts.

One force targeted a compound in search of the militant commander for Garmser district, who directs attacks against coalition forces and runs weapons and supplies for Taliban fighters. Afghan forces used a loudspeaker to ask residents to leave their buildings and after questioning, the assault force detained several suspected insurgents.

A separate security force went to Marjah district looking for the Nawah-i-Barakzayi district commander, who recently returned from Pakistan, NATO said. The force captured three men who tried to escape a compound by maneuvering through a nearby canal. The assault force detained several suspected insurgents and found 5 pounds (2.3 kilograms) of opium at the scene.

[Associated Press; By AMIR SHAH]

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