Bomb blast kills coalition service member in Afghanistan

[News_Editor]

Bomb blast kills coalition service member in Afghanistan

2011-05-31 19:16:31 GMT+7 (ICT)

KABUL (BNO NEWS) -- A bomb blast killed a coalition service member in eastern Afghanistan on Tuesday morning, the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

ISAF said one of its service members was killed in eastern Afghanistan as a result of an improvised explosive device (IED) attack, but provided no other details. The nationality of the service member was also not immediately disclosed. "It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities," a brief statement said.

On Monday, a gunman dressed as an Afghan National Army soldier shot and killed a coalition service member in southern Afghanistan. Another service member died in a helicopter crash, while two others died in a bomb blast.

Coalition casualties in Afghanistan have been rising sharply in recent years, with a total coalition death toll of 709 in 2010, making it the deadliest year for international troops since the war began in response to the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States.

So far this year, 215 coalition service members have been killed in Afghanistan. Most troops are killed in the country's south, which is plagued by IED attacks on troops and civilians.

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