Ambush Hits NATO Convoy In Afghanistan, Killing 2 US Service Members – NPR

An American helicopter hovers over a NATO convoy struck by a suicide bomb Wednesday. The Pentagon says the attack, which unfolded near the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, killed two U.S. service members. STR/AP hide caption

An American helicopter hovers over a NATO convoy struck by a suicide bomb Wednesday. The Pentagon says the attack, which unfolded near the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, killed two U.S. service members.

Two U.S. service members were killed Wednesday when a NATO convoy came under attack outside the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, according to the Pentagon. It was not immediately clear how many people were wounded in the violence, which unfolded near an American base.

The Taliban quickly claimed responsibility for the bombing, saying a militant carried out a suicide attack with a truck packed with explosives.

NATO's Resolute Support mission in the country confirmed an assault on its convoy but did not offer further details. "We are working to gather additional information as quickly as possible," the coalition said in a statement.

As NPR's Tom Bowman notes, the Taliban rose to prominence first in Kandahar Province in the 1990s, but in recent years, U.S. and Afghan forces have largely pushed the militant group from the area.

"The last American combat deaths in Kandahar were in 2014," Tom says, "but during the past year, the Taliban have made inroads once again in Kandahar."

The Pentagon is considering sending nearly 4,000 more troops to the country to train their Afghan counterparts, joining a U.S. contingent that currently numbers roughly 8,500.

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Ambush Hits NATO Convoy In Afghanistan, Killing 2 US Service Members - NPR