US soldier salutes helmet representing fallen Canadian soldier

 Canadian military officials say four of their soldiers were killed and eight others were wounded, some seriously.

 A U.S. defense official says the pilot dropped the 225-kilo bomb Thursday because he mistook a live-fire exercise on the ground for hostile fire.

 President Bush telephoned Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien to offer condolences to the families of the Canadian soldiers.

 U.S. Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld has expressed deep regret over the incident and promised to work closely with Canadian defense officials on the investigation.

 Officials say the site of the accident is a former al-Qaida training camp used daily by coalition forces for live-fire exercises.

 Canadian forces are fighting alongside U.S. and European troops seeking to hunt down remnants of Osama bin Laden's terrorist network.

 Meanwhile, the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press reports at least three people were killed early Thursday in a bomb blast at a busy market in the town of Khost, in eastern Afghanistan.

 It was not clear if the explosion was politically motivated or the result of a feud between rival Afghan groups.

 The report says it was the third explosion in Khost since the the Taleban was driven from power last year. The Taleban and al-Qaida are known to have wide support in the town, located near the Pakistani border.
 
 

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