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Sunday, June 19, 2011

Suicide bomber hits NATO convoy

NEW: The Taliban says it targeted the German troops in a suicide car bombing NEW: Officials: Those confirmed killed or wounded are civiliansNEW: It is not clear if there are NATO casualties in the latest attack The attack comes after the Afghan president said the U.S. is in peace talks with the Taliban

Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- The Taliban claimed responsibility for a suicide car bomb attack Sunday that targeted a NATO convoy in northern Afghanistan's Kunduz province, killing at least three people and wounding 11, a spokesman for the provincial governor's office said.

The attack came a day after Afghan President Hamid Karzai said the United States was involved in peace talks with the Taliban. U.S. officials have downplayed Karzai's statements, saying there had been contact but no discussions substantial enough to be considered negotiations.

News of the talks has done little to stem attacks in Afghanistan.

On Sunday, a suicide bomber detonated a car full of explosives just as a convoy driven by German soldiers passed, said the governor's spokesman, Mahbobellah Saidi.

The convoy was attacked on the road leading to the airport in Kunduz City, the provincial capital, the Ministry of Interior said in a written statement.

All those killed and wounded were civilians, according to Saidi and the ministry statement.

It was not immediately clear whether there were NATO casualties, though one of the convoy vehicles was damaged, Saidi said.

But the Taliban claimed to have killed many soldiers in the attack.

"The troops were targeted accurately, according to the plan, and many of the soldier have been killed as a result of the attack," Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mojahed told CNN by telephone from an unknown location.

CNN can not independently verify the Taliban claim nor Saidi's account.

On Saturday, four NATO service members were killed in combat-related incidents in eastern and southern Afghanistan, and another four were killed in a vehicle accident in southern Afghanistan, NATO said.

ISAF has not released the names of those killed, saying its policy is to defer casualty identification procedures to national authorities.


CNN

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