8 US men perish in Afghan suicide attack

Thursday, December 31, 2009
KABUL: At least 8 American civilian workers were killed on Wednesday in a suicide bomb attack on a US military base, officials said.

Pentagon spokeswoman Lt Col Almarah Belk said the eight died when an attacker detonated a vest packed with explosives on Forward Operating Base Chapman in Khost province -- a key Taliban stronghold.

"Eight Americans have been killed in an attack on RC-East," a US embassy official said, referring to the military region of eastern Afghanistan.

"No US and no ISAF military personnel were killed or injured" in the incident, a spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) added.

Suicide attacks are a hallmark of the Taliban, who are waging a major insurgency to topple the government of Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

The number of foreign civilians under government contracts in Afghanistan is increasing, with the strategy to defeat the Taliban placing more emphasis on development and aid.

The US said last month it had doubled the number of civilian experts working in Afghanistan and was "on track" to meet its goal of nearly 1,000 by the New Year. Many are to work in provincial military bases alongside military reconstruction teams.

The attack came just over two months after Taliban suicide gunmen stormed a Kabul hostel in a dawn attack and killed five UN workers.

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India's swine flu death rate is increasing

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Cuba's world-famous cigar festival closes in Havana

Sunday, February 28, 2010 HAVANA: Hundreds of wealthy merchants and cigar aficionados from all parts of the world gathered in Havana this week to bid high stakes for humidors full of premium cigars. Cuba's annual Habanos festival ended on Friday night with an auction of ornate humidors of cedar and mahogany stacked with hand-rolled stogies that raised 800,000 euros ($1.09 million dollars). Habanos S.A. executives this month said cigar sales fell 8 percent to $360 million in 2009, so they have created the Julieta, a smaller, milder version of the Romeo y Julieta cigar, aimed specifically at female smokers. Women now make up only 5 to 10 percent of customers for Habanos. But even with the creation of the Julieta, Garcia said Habanos has only modest hopes for 2010 sales, due largely to a weak economy in Spain, the biggest market for Cuban cigars. The flavor of premium tobacco relies on the soil and climate in which it is grown. The western province of Pinar Del Rio, famous fo...

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