A roadside bomb exploded just south of Kabul, killing two Italian soldiers and wounding four more according to a NATO military spokesman.
The soldiers were in two military vehicles on patrol just outside the capital when one of them was hit on Friday at approximately 5:00 PM local time.
The four wounded soldiers were taken to a military hospital for treatment.
Militants have stepped up their attacks in Afghanistan in recent months, particularly in the southern part of the country which was the strength of the Taliban regime.
'The soldiers that were attacked in this case were exercising duties to assist with security,' explained Major Luke Knittig, a Kabul-based spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force. 'The very knowledge that there are security threats in the Kabul area is why they were out.'
Italy presently has 1,600 troops in Afghanistan as part of NATOs 10,000 strong person security forces. Italy had been in control of the NATO force until Thursday when Great Britain took command.
A total of seven Italian soldiers have now been killed in Afghanistan. The attack on NATO forces comes during a week in which government officials were also attacked by Taliban-inspired rebels.
