KANDAHAR, Afghanistan – A roadside bomb killed four Canadian soldiers on Saturday in the deadliest attack on that nation’s troops since they deployed in Afghanistan four years ago, and commanders blamed loyalists of the former Taliban regime.
The blast came as Afghan President Hamid Karzai said “foreigners” were fomenting his country’s insurgency. He didn’t name any countries or groups.
Canadian officers said the bomb destroyed one of four armored vehicles in a convoy and killed its four occupants in Gomboth, a village about 25 miles north of the southern city of Kandahar, a former Taliban stronghold.
“We are pretty confident that it was the Taliban, and we knew coming in here that they would be targeting us,” Maj. Quentin Innis said.
A 2,200-soldier Canadian contingent moved into southern Afghanistan to relieve U.S. troops. Canada has had forces in the country since the U.S.-led invasion that toppled the Taliban at the end of 2001. At least 16 Canadians have been killed.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the bombing, but Taliban militants had vowed to step up attacks on coalition and Afghan forces.
Rising violence is a growing concern for nations contributing troops to a force operating here under a NATO mandate. The force is to rise from its current 10,000 soldiers to about 21,000 by November as it gradually assumes command of all international troops in Afghanistan.
About 6,000 mainly British, Canadian and Dutch soldiers have started deploying in the south, which abuts the mountainous frontier with Pakistan. The remote, tribal-dominated region is believed to be a haven for Taliban and al-Qaida extremists.
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