2 U.S. Soldiers Killed in Afghanistan

A roadside bomb exploded near an American military vehicle in southeastern Afghanistan, killing two U.S. soldiers and an Afghan interpreter, the U.S. military said today.

One U.S. soldier was injured in the blast Saturday about 60 miles southwest of the city of Ghazni, a military statement said. The wounded soldier was flown to the U.S. base in the southern city of Kandahar for treatment and was reported in stable condition.

Fifty-eight U.S. troops have died in action in Afghanistan since U.S. forces entered the country in 2001 to drive out the Taliban and its Al Qaeda allies.

The latest deaths came as officials announced that two Afghan election workers were killed in an attack on a convoy in a remote Taliban stronghold. Twelve people have been killed while helping prepare for Oct. 9 presidential elections.

At least 30 militants fired at the convoy belonging to the joint Afghan-U.N. electoral body on Friday in Char Cheno district of central Oruzgan province, Gov. Jan Mohammed Khan said. Guards returned fire, and one Taliban fighter was captured, Khan said.