Blast kills seven NATO troops in southern Afghanistan

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Source: LAT

Reporting from Kandahar, Afghanistan—
An explosion in southern Afghanistan on Thursday killed seven Western troops, the coalition said, an unusually large toll for a single incident.

Earlier in the day, NATO's International Security Assistance Force, or ISAF, announced the death of another service member in a helicopter crash in Afghanistan's east. The cause of the crash was under investigation, the coalition said.

Western military officials did not immediately disclose the nationalities of the dead. Most of the troops in both the south and the east are Americans. U.S. troops make up about two-thirds of the overall NATO force.

The deaths come as Western commanders are seeking to consolidate military gains, particularly in the south, in advance of a U.S. troop drawdown set to begin next month. The scale of the pullback has not been finalized, and senior officials have said it will depend on battlefield conditions.

Read more: http://www.latimes.com/news/nationworld/world/la-fg-afghan-attack-20110527,0,3432108.story

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2. edit confirmed: 7 US soldiers among 8 NATO dead in Afghan blast

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — A U.S. official says all seven of the NATO service members killed in a powerful bomb explosion in southern Afghanistan were Americans.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for Thursday's bombing in Shorabak district of Kandahar province near the Pakistan border.

The official spoke on condition of anonymity because the information had not yet been publicly released.

http://www.seattlepi.com/news/article/7-US-soldiers-among-8-NATO-dead-in-Afghan-blast-1396730.php