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Two ISAF troops killed in Kabul bombing as Obama reaffirms withdrawal

ISAF has not yet released the nationalities of the troops killed Monday.

By JC Finley
U.S. soldiers at Forward Operating Base in Spin Boldak Afghanistan, carry an Afghan civilian to an awaiting medical evacuation helicopter after a suicide bombing at the Afghan-Pakistan border crossing near the base on July 5, 2013. UPI/ Spc. J. Prevot/ DoD.
U.S. soldiers at Forward Operating Base in Spin Boldak Afghanistan, carry an Afghan civilian to an awaiting medical evacuation helicopter after a suicide bombing at the Afghan-Pakistan border crossing near the base on July 5, 2013. UPI/ Spc. J. Prevot/ DoD. | License Photo

KABUL, Afghanistan, Nov. 24 (UPI) -- The U.S.-led International Security Assistance Force announced that two foreign troops were killed Monday when their coalition convoy was bombed in eastern Afghanistan.

The nationalities of the dead were not released by ISAF, pending notification of next of kin.

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According to Rohullah, head of the criminal investigation division of the Afghan police, the bomb was detonated at 8:45 a.m. in eastern Kabul, striking a Toyota Land Cruiser. Hashmet Stanekzai, a spokesman for Kabul's police chief, said the bomb was attached to a bicycle that was detonated by remote control.

U.S. Ambassador to Kabul James B. Cunningham condemned the attack. "We offer our condolences to the families and friends of the victims and pray for the speedy recovery of those wounded in today's attack," the embassy said in a statement.

The announcement of ISAF casualties, the first coalition soldiers to die in Afghanistan since Nov. 14, comes as U.S. President Barack Obama reaffirmed U.S. military withdrawal from the war-torn country. A New York Times article published last week that a purported classified executive order had authorized an expanded role for U.S. troops in Afghanistan in 2015.

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Speaking from the White House about Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel's resignation decision on Monday, Obama said "Our forces have drawn down. Our combat mission there ends next month, and we'll partner with Afghans to preserve the gains we have made."

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