2 police killed in roadside blast in eastern Afghanistan

By RAHIM FAIEZ, Associated Press Writer Wed May 7, 11:30 AM ET

KABUL, Afghanistan - A roadside bomb hit a police vehicle in eastern Afghanistan on Wednesday, killing two officers, while another blast in the same area killed a suspected would-be suicide bomber, officials said.

The attack on the police car occurred just outside the capital of Khost province as the officers traveled from their homes to work, said Wazir Pacha, a spokesman for the provincial police chief.

The powerful explosion destroyed the vehicle, Pacha said.

Insurgents often target the police force, which is more vulnerable and exposed than the better trained and equipped Afghan national army. Over 920 police officers were killed by militants in 2007.

Separately, a vehicle filled with explosives detonated in the same province, killing the driver and wounding a woman and a child who were outside, Khost provincial police Chief Gen. Mohammad Ayub said.

The explosion occurred close to the border police barracks, he said.

The blast appeared to be premature and the dead man is suspected of being a suicide bomber, Ayub said.

Authorities were looking for other suspects in the area of the blast, he said.

On Tuesday, U.S.-led coalition and Afghan troops detained 13 suspected militants during a raid in the Zadran district of neighboring Paktia province, the coalition said in a statement. One militant received a head injury during the operation and was transported to a military hospital for treatment, it said.

Troops found weapons and ammunition in a search of the compounds.

Militants are active in the country's east, where they use the porous borders with Pakistan to move men and equipment into Afghanistan.