Bomb stuck onto army vehicle kills Afghan soldier

A bomb stuck onto an Afghan army vehicle in Kabul killed a soldier today while a woman died when a rocket slammed into a residential area in the country's east.
The Kabul explosion, caused by a magnetic bomb attached to the army vehicle, also wounded a woman and a child, according to the city's police chief Gen Mohammad Zahir Zahir. The blast took place in the eastern part of the Afghan capital in the early morning hours.
Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid claimed responsibility for the attack in a message to reporters.
In eastern Ghazni province, a rocket fired into a residential neighbourhood of the provincial capital killed one woman and wounded a child today, deputy provincial governor Mohammad Ali Ahmadi said. No one immediately claimed responsibility for that attack.

On Monday, the Taliban launched their annual spring offencive with a wave of attacks across the south and east of the country, killing 21 people.
Spring each year brings an escalation in fighting in Afghanistan with the end of snowy winter weather, which hampers movement. The melting of the snows opens up mountain passes allowing militant forces to move in from refuges in neighbouring Pakistan.
This year's offencive by the Taliban will be an important gauge of how well Afghan government forces face insurgent attacks once foreign combat forces leave at the end of the year.