Afghan Bombs Kills 10 Security Contractors

A police official says 10 private security guards traveling in a convoy have been killed in two roadside bomb blasts in eastern Afghanistan.

Police chief Azizullah Wardak of Paktia province says Wednesday the convoy was hit by one roadside bomb that killed one security guard on Tuesday.

Wardak says a second blast then hit the convoy and killed nine other guards in Paktia's Chamkani district.

He says the guards were based with U.S. troops in the area. It was unclear what security company they were working for.

Militants have stepped up attacks across Afghanistan. President Barack Obama's administration has ordered 21,000 new U.S. troops to join the fight in a hope of reversing the Taliban gains.