21 people, including three soldiers of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), were killed in a suicide bomb attack on a security checkpoint jointly manned by ISAF-Afghan forces in the volatile eastern region bordering Pakistan on Wednesday.
The attacker detonated an explosives-laden motorbike he drove near a mosque in a crowded part of Khost city, the capital of a province with the same name.
Dozens were injured in the explosion.
The casualties reportedly included policemen, women and children.
ISAF confirmed the military casualties, but did not disclose their nationality, deferring casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities.
It was the second such attack this month targeting foreign troops in Khost, a stronghold of the Haqqani militant group, which has links to Taliban and Al-Qaeda.
Militants carried out another attack on Wednesday in the southern Logar province, in which 8 people, including four children and two women, were killed.
A wagon crowded with passengers hit a roadside bomb planted by the Taliban in the provincial capital Puli Alam, reports quoting provincial spokesman said.
For comments and feedback: editorial@rttnews.com