Two killed in Afghan suicide bomb attacks

A suicide car bomber rammed into an Afghan and Nato convoy today, killing an Afghan soldier and a civilian while a second suicide bomber disguised in a burqa injured two Afghan soldiers in a nearby province, officials said.

The deadly attack in the eastern province of Paktia targeted a convoy of Afghan security forces, and also injured three people, including two US-led coalition soldiers, a Nato statement said.

Most of the coalition forces in Afghanistan are American. The two soldiers, whose job is to work alongside Afghan security forces, received minor injuries, the statement said.

In nearby Paktika province, a male bomber wearing a burqa walked up to Afghan soldiers patrolling in a market place and blew himself up, wounding two soldiers, said Gen. Murad Ali, the deputy regional army commander.

Ali said it was the first time he could remember a bomber disguised in a burqa in his region. Taliban militants have launched a record number of suicide and roadside bombs this year. About 4,000 people have been killed in insurgency-related violence in 2006.