Afghan bomb kills 5 in same family

KABUL, Afghanistan (CNN) -- A roadside bomb struck an unmarked police car in eastern Afghanistan Tuesday morning, killing five police officers who were all part of the same family.

The five officers -- a father, his two sons and two nephews -- had left Saberi, a district in the Khost province, when they were attacked, said Lutfullah Babkarkhail, the district's administrative chief.

Gen. Mohammad Ayoub, the police chief of Khost, said the bomb that struck the officers' car was remotely detonated. He blamed the attack on "the enemies of Afghanistan," a term that Afghan officials commonly use to describe Taliban militants.

The U.S.-led coalition said on Tuesday that Afghan Army commandos and coalition troops arrested 17 suspected insurgents near the Sabari and the Tirzaye districts in Khost. The arrests were made on Sunday, according to a coalition statement.

"ANA commandos continue to successfully perform counter insurgency operations," said Army Capt. Vanessa Bowman, a coalition spokeswoman. "Arresting these insurgents will put a significant dent in IED attacks in the Tirzaye and Sabari districts."

Attacks have shot up against Afghan and foreign troops in the country -- with militants often using roadside bombs to target them.

On February 12, a roadside bomb in Khost struck a vehicle carrying Afghan security guards working for the U.S. military. Two guards were killed and another wounded, authorities said.

On February 18, a suicide bomber rammed his car into a Canadian military convoy near Afghanistan's border with Pakistan Monday, killing more than 100, including 35 civilians.

Khost is a mountainous region near Afghanistan's border with Pakistan. Once "a hotbed of lawlessness and insurgent activity," it has shown progress in recent months, U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates said in December.

Afghan officials there have worked with a U.S.-led provincial reconstruction team to promote economic development and security, Gates said. E-mail to a friend

Journalist Farhad Peikar contributed to this report.

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