The Taliban claimed responsibility yesterday for killing two Britons and their Afghan translator as they helped the United Nations to prepare for elections in eastern Afghanistan. The victims worked for London-based Global Risk Strategies, which supplies security consultants for a UN programme to register voters for landmark elections planned for September. Taliban commander Mullah Sabir Momin said from an undisclosed location that the Taliban were responsible and were stepping up attacks in the south. "The two British infidels and their Afghan translator were killed by the Taliban because the Taliban are killing all locals and foreigners who are helping the Americans to consolidate their occupation of Afghanistan," he said. Global Risk Strategies confirmed in a statement in London that two employees, both British, had been killed. Afghan President Hamid Karzai condemned the "cowardly act". "The enemies of peace and progress in Afghanistan, witnessing the participation of the population to determine their own future, aim to destabilize the country in any way they can," he said. "However, Afghanistan will continue relentlessly on the path that the people of this country have chosen: the path of peace, prosperity and reconstruction." NATO forces in Afghanistan have feared a spring offensive by the Taliban and their allies, particularly in the south and east. The Taliban's Momin said the latest killings took place in the Mandol district in eastern Nuristan province. The bodies were discovered by local authorities, said Interior Ministry spokesman Lutfullah Mashal. **PHOTO CAPTION*** Shamsul Ahmad sits at his vegetable stall in Bamiyan, 200 km (120 miles) west of the Afghan capital Kabul April 19, 2004. (REUTERS)