Wednesday, July 18, 2012 -
The Taliban destroyed 22 NATO fuel tankers on Wednesday which were making their way south from Uzbekistan to their Afghan destination.
At least nine soldiers were killed in the explosions, which occurred on a critical portion of the Northern Distribution Network (NDN). Two of the soldiers are reported to be NATO troops, the Agence France-Presse (AFP) news agency said.
The explosions occurred just before dawn in the Samangan province in northern Afghanistan, international news sources reported.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack in a statement, also issued Wednesday.
The Islamist group had warned NATO that it would attack convoys carrying goods to Afghanistan after Pakistan reached agreement with the U.S. to re-open its routes allowing NATO traffic through its territory.
Traffic has not yet resumed the levels before Pakistan closed off routes in November 2011.
Attacks from the Taliban are more common in the east and in the south of Afghanistan.