KABUL, Afghanistan, July 29 (UPI) -- A roadside bomb explosion Tuesday in the Taliban stronghold of Helmand province in southern Afghanistan killed eight Afghan contractors, officials said.
The contractors were escorting a NATO supply convoy, The New York Times reported quoting the officials.
The report quoted the Interior Ministry as saying four other guards were wounded in the attack near Gereshk in the province, currently the scene of an expanded military offensive by U.S. and British troops along with Afghan forces to secure the province ahead of the country's Aug. 20 presidential elections.
The Times report said the security guards were in two vehicles on the main highway between Herat and Kandahar when the attack occurred. Although no one had claimed responsibility, a provincial spokesman blamed the Taliban.
Coalition casualties continue to mount since the Helmand campaign began. The Times report said in July alone 69 coalition soldiers died including 32 Americans.
