(Updates with Taliban claim) KHOST, Afghanistan, Dec 28 (Reuters) - A suicide bomber killed six people, including four children, and wounded 36 others in the southeastern Afghan province of Khost on Sunday, a provincial official said. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, part of the worst spate of violence in Afghanistan this year, itself the bloodiest period since the militants were overthrown in 2001. Two of the six killed in the attack on Ismail Kheil's district headquarters were members of the security forces, district chief Dawlat Qayoumi told reporters. U.S. forces were also in the building during the attack, but suffered no losses, Qayoumi said. "The attack has also caused damage to the building," he added. A doctor in the main hospital in Khost said 36 people, many of them civilians, were wounded in the attack. Some were in critical condition. The escalation of violence in Afghanistan has raised concerns the country may slide back into anarchy despite increased deployments of foreign troops. U.S.-led troops with the backing of some Afghan armed factions overthrew the Taliban government after it refused to hand over al Qaeda leaders accused by Washington of masterminding the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. The Taliban, who are largely active in southern and eastern regions near the border with Pakistan, have regrouped since 2005 and mostly rely on suicide attacks and roadside bomb raids against Afghan and foreign troops. (Writing by Sayed Salahuddin; Editing by Giles Elgood)
Israeli children play inside a bomb shelter in the southern town of Sderot December 28, 2008. Israel destroyed Hamas's main Gaza security complex in an air strike on Sunday and prepared ...
