Suicide car bomb kills 2 outside Nato base

The explosions highlighted the increasing risk to foreign forces as they expand into new areas across Afghanistan. A suicide attack outside a US-led coalition base Friday wounded two US military service members and one US civilian contractor in southern Helmand province.

Saturday's attack occurred near the gates of the base in Herat city, which is home to hundreds of Italian soldiers, said police chief Gen. Mohammed Ayub Salingi.

A spokesman for the Nato force, Warrant Officer Cosimo Argentieri, said no foreign troops were killed. He said one foreign civilian inside the base was slightly wounded in an arm.

He said the blast was being investigated, but declined to give further details.

Salingi said a suicide attacker drove a vehicle up to the gates of the base and detonated explosives inside the car.