Roadside bomb in Afghanistan kills 5 American NATO troops
Afghan security personnel search a man at a checkpoint in the city of Jalalabad in Nangarhar province on April 28, 2013. Afghan forces, police and army, are due to take full security responsibility from their Western allies, a US-led NATO force, by the end of 2014 when the foreign troops leave the country.
A roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan Saturday killed five American NATO coalition members.
"Five International Security Assistance Force service members died following an improvised explosive device attack in southern Afghanistan today," the ISAF coalition said in a brief statement.
ISAF, as per protocol, would not release the victims' identities.
The explosion comes just days after another roadside bomb in southern Helmand province left three British troops dead.
It also coincides with Afghanistan's leader Hamid Karzai's admission to accepting funding from the CIA over the last 10 years as part of the US government's regular assistance to the nation.
"It is an official government deal between the two governments. This is happening all over the world — such deals between governments — and in Afghanistan, which is a needy country, these sorts of deals are very important and useful," Karzai said at a press conference in Kabul on Saturday.
Saturday's attack happened in the southern Afghan province of Kandahar, and has capped off one of the bloodiest weeks for NATO's international forces so far this year.
In 2013, NATO has lost 47 coalition members to continued violence in the region, including 32 Americans, even as they prepare to drawdown forces by 2014.
The Taliban announced its "spring offensive" last week, vowing fresh attacks on international forces.