2 Canadian soldiers die in Afghanistan

An explosion in southern Afghanistan killed two Canadian soldiers and wounded three others Wednesday, an official said.

The blast happened three days after six Canadian troops were killed in a roadside bomb explosion in the south, the single worst combat loss for Canada in Afghanistan.

Col. Mike Cessford, deputy commander of the Canadian contingent in Afghanistan, did not disclose the exact location of Wednesday's blast.

There are some 2,500 Canadian troops in Afghanistan in 36,000-strong NATO force. Most of the Canadians are based in volatile southern province of Kandahar.

The latest violence comes as NATO and Afghan troops push on with their largest-ever anti-Taliban offensive in southern Afghanistan. Operation Achilles was launched last month to flush out Taliban militants from the northern tip of opium-producing Helmand province.