Taliban claim responsibility for suicide attack in S. Afghanistan

KABUL, April 10 (Xinhua) -- Qari Yusuf Ahmadi, the purported Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the suicide attack in southern Afghanistan's Kandahar city on Thursday, which killed at least eight civilians and wounded over 26 others.

Ahmadi told Xinhua via phone from an unknown hideout that a suicide bomber named Ahmadullah Khan from Kandahar city carried out that attack targeting NATO forces. The attack left six soldiers dead and two vehicles destroyed.

Sayed Aqa Saqib, the police chief of Kandahar province, told Xinhua that the incident occurred in the downtown of Kandahar city at around 10 a.m. (0530GMT) as a suicide attacker drove car laden with explosives and exploded himself while getting close to the NATO convoy.

"Eight civilians including two children were killed and 26 others including two policemen were injured," Saqib said," over 14shops along the street hit by explosion were damaged."

However, he said there were no casualties on NATO troops.

Conflicts and Taliban-related violence have left more than 360 people dead so far this year in war-torn Afghanistan, where Taliban militants recently have vowed to launch the "Spring offensive" to intensify their guerrilla-style attacks on national army and foreign troops.