Afghan Suicide Blast Kills 8 Americans

A suicide bomber detonated his explosive vest at a military base in eastern Afghanistan today, killing eight Americans. The explosion occurred at Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost province near the Pakistan border. In Kabul, a spokesman for the international coalition force in Kabul said no US or NATO troops were killed in the blast. The victims could have been military contractors.

Local people reported hearing a blast on the base, where an explosion in January killed an Afghan civilian and wounded four others. Soon after today's blast, two helicopters landed, a police officer in Khost said. Chapman is one of dozens of forward operating bases that support reconstruction efforts and other civilian operations across the nation. (More Afghanistan war stories.)