Fourth British soldier killed in Afghanistan in a week
6th August 2006
British soldiers in Afghanistan
A British soldier was killed in an operation against Taliban guerrillas in southern Afghanistan today, the latest NATO soldier to die since the group took over security in the south from U.S. troops.
Another NATO soldier was wounded in a suicide attack in another part of southern Afghanistan, a NATO statement said.
The soldier is the fourth member of the UK Armed Forces to die in the country in a week.
The latest death brings the number of NATO soldiers killed since it took over the south from the United States to eight. Seventeen British forces personnel have been killed in Afghanistan since November, 2001, five not in combat.
The latest fatality was in southern Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold. Helmand is Afghanistan's main drug producing area, where at least nine British soldiers have been killed in militants attacks since May as NATO built up to the takeover.
Afghan officials said 13 Taliban insurgents were killed in another area of Helmand on Saturday night.
Earlier today, a suicide car bomber rammed his vehicle into a convoy of NATO forces in neighbouring Kandahar, wounding a soldier.
Afghanistan is going through the bloodiest phase of violence since U.S.-led coalition forces overthrew the Taliban government in 2001, with most Taliban attacks occurring on a daily basis in the south in recent months.
The expansion of NATO into the south is the biggest ground operation by NATO in its history and is aimed at allowing the U.S. to cut the size of its force to 20,000 from 23,000.
Almost 80 foreign soldiers, hundreds of militants and Afghan forces, scores of civilians and dozens of aid workers have been killed in attacks by Taliban and drug barons and operations by foreign forces mostly in southern and eastern areas this year.
dailymail.co.uk
6th August 2006
British soldiers in Afghanistan
A British soldier was killed in an operation against Taliban guerrillas in southern Afghanistan today, the latest NATO soldier to die since the group took over security in the south from U.S. troops.
Another NATO soldier was wounded in a suicide attack in another part of southern Afghanistan, a NATO statement said.
The soldier is the fourth member of the UK Armed Forces to die in the country in a week.
The latest death brings the number of NATO soldiers killed since it took over the south from the United States to eight. Seventeen British forces personnel have been killed in Afghanistan since November, 2001, five not in combat.
The latest fatality was in southern Helmand province, a Taliban stronghold. Helmand is Afghanistan's main drug producing area, where at least nine British soldiers have been killed in militants attacks since May as NATO built up to the takeover.
Afghan officials said 13 Taliban insurgents were killed in another area of Helmand on Saturday night.
Earlier today, a suicide car bomber rammed his vehicle into a convoy of NATO forces in neighbouring Kandahar, wounding a soldier.
Afghanistan is going through the bloodiest phase of violence since U.S.-led coalition forces overthrew the Taliban government in 2001, with most Taliban attacks occurring on a daily basis in the south in recent months.
The expansion of NATO into the south is the biggest ground operation by NATO in its history and is aimed at allowing the U.S. to cut the size of its force to 20,000 from 23,000.
Almost 80 foreign soldiers, hundreds of militants and Afghan forces, scores of civilians and dozens of aid workers have been killed in attacks by Taliban and drug barons and operations by foreign forces mostly in southern and eastern areas this year.
dailymail.co.uk
