54 Taliban killed in clashes
5 Afghans die in bomb blast
A bomb ripped through a government vehicle in eastern Afghanistan yesterday and killed five people while the army and police reported they had killed 54 militants in clashes at the weekend.
The remote-controlled bomb in eastern Nangarhar province destroyed a district's top three officials -- the chief of Khogyani district, his police commander and his intelligence chief.
A policeman and a passer-by were also killed, Nangarhar police spokesman Ghafoor Khan said.
For all latest news, follow The Daily Star's Google News channel. The officials were travelling to a village to visit a school that the Taliban-led militants torched late Sunday, Khan said.
Purported Taliban spokesman Yousuf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the attack, saying his Taliban fighters detonated the bomb which was planted on a road.
The army meanwhile reported it had killed 30 "enemy elements" on Saturday in an operation with foreign troops in southern Uruzgan province. Police put the toll at 20.
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