[Quqnoos] Three German soldiers were killed Tuesday in the relatively peaceful Afghan northern province of Kunduz, German Defence Ministry said Taliban militants attacked a convoy of German troops, throwing hand grenades and their vehicles heading to the provincial centre, Kunduz city.
The soldiers were killed after one of the jeeps was capsized.
A spokesman for the provincial government, Mahbubullah Sayedi confirmed the incident that took place in Chahar Dara district, north of Kunduz city.
The soldiers were killed after their vehicle was drowned into a ditch in the district, a German paper Spiegel reports.
Quqnoos' Basir Samadi in Kunduz said the troops were killed after a ferice fighting with the Taliban militants.
A purported Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, immediately claimed responsibility for the attack said a dozen of German troops were killed and two vehicles were destroyed in the firefight.
The stable northern region of the country has been suffering a record level of insurgency over the past three months, ahead of the crucial Afghan elections.
Germany a strong NATO ally in the Afghan mission has lost 36 soldiers in Afghanistan -- mostly in the north -- since the beginning of the US-led war in 2001.