Afghanistan holds 'bomb plotters'

The suicide attack in Spin Boldak killed more than 20 people

Afghan security forces in Kandahar province say they have arrested nine people, including two Pakistanis, suspected of plotting attacks.

The governor of Kandahar, Assadullah Khalid, said would-be suicide bombers were among those detained.

He said the nine arrested were captured during raids across the southern province in the past 48 hours.

There have been a spate of bomb attacks there, including one in Spin Boldak which killed more than 20 people.

'Crossing border'

"They were arrested with explosives and vehicles which they planned to use for attacks... Among the nine are people who were suicide bombers," Mr Khalid told a news conference.

A Canadian diplomat had died in an attack on Nato troops in Kandahar

Meanwhile, the army said they had arrested a senior military commander of the Taleban and four alleged militants in the province in the past few days.

Defence Ministry spokesman Gen Mohammad Zahir Azimi identified the "important Taleban military commander" as Mullah Jalan.

The four others are believed to have been involved in an attack in the province, he said.

But it was not immediately clear whether these five were included in the arrests announced by Governor Khalid.

Mr Khalid told the BBC's Bilal Sarwary that the two arrested Pakistani nationals had confessed to crossing the border from Pakistan into Kandahar to carry out attacks; he said they would be shown to the media.

Earlier this month Mr Khalid accused neighbouring Pakistan of supporting the perpetrators of recent bomb attacks - an allegation Pakistan denies.