Suicide bomber kills 10 in Afghanistan

KABUL -- A suicide bomber on a motorcycle killed at least 10 people, including three American soldiers, at a park in a relatively peaceful area of northern Afghanistan yesterday, part of an increase in violence at the start of the spring hostilities.

The Taliban, which claimed responsibility for the attack, are targeting Afghan and NATO security forces as they fight to assert their power and undermine U.S. efforts to build up the Afghan military, who will take the lead in combat responsibility over the next couple of years.

Shortly before noon, the bomber detonated his explosives at the gate of the park in Maimanah, the capital of Faryab province, police spokesman Lal Mohammad Ahmad Zai said. His target was unclear, but Zai said four of the 10 killed were Afghan police officers. At least 20 people were wounded, officials said.

In Kabul, NATO said three of its service members were killed in a bombing yesterday in northern Afghanistan. It provided no other details about the attack or the nationalities of the three.

A senior U.S. defense official, however, confirmed that three were American troops killed in the Faryab bombing. He spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to release the information.

Norway and Germany, which commands alliance operations in northern Afghanistan, said none of their troops were involved. Troops of other nationalities also serve in the area -- most of them at a Norwegian base that works on partnering with Afghan troops so that they can eventually take control of security in the region.

In a statement on their website, the Afghan Taliban claimed killing 16 coalition troops and 12 Afghans in the Faryab suicide attack.

Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi said a suicide bomber detonated his explosive belt among coalition forces in Maimanah as they were traveling to a park. He added that eyewitnesses said that the coalition troops indiscriminately fired their weapons, killing one civilian and wounding others. That report could not be confirmed.