Albanian troops escape injuries in Afghanistan attack

TIRANA, April 11 – Albanian troops serving in Afghanistan were targeted in a suicide attack last week, escaping without injuries, officials said.
The Defense Ministry reported that the troops of the Eagle 8 special forces were serving as part of a joint mission with U.S. army troops patrolling an area in Kandahar when a vehicle hit the convoy and exploded. Two U.S. soldiers in the front vehicle were injured.
The next day, Defense Minister Mimi Kodheli and senior military generals held a video conference call with the troops to show their support.
Two Albanian army contingents are part of the ISAF operation in Kandahar and Kabul.
Two years ago, Albania suffered its first casualty in Afghanistan. That was the first death of Albanian soldiers abroad since the country began sending troops for peacekeeping missions alongside its Western allies.
That attack also occurred in the Kandahar area.
The minister also assured the peacekeeping troops there that the government would reconsider the new progressive taxation on the personal income to excluded them.