British soldier goes missing in southern Afghanistan

British soldier goes missing in southern Afghanistan

2011-07-04 19:41:56 GMT+7 (ICT)

KABUL (BNO NEWS) -- A British soldier went missing in southern Afghanistan on early Monday morning, the UK Ministry of Defense confirmed. Few details about the disappearance were immediately released.

The Ministry said the British soldier was based in Central Helmand province and was reported missing in the early hours of Monday. "His next of kin have been informed and they will be updated as the operation continues," a brief statement said, adding that an extensive operation to locate him is underway.

A statement from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) confirmed one of its service members had gone missing. "An [iSAF] service member has been listed as duty status whereabouts unknown in southern Afghanistan," the multinational force said, giving no other details.

Some media reports cited a Taliban spokesman as saying that the militant group had kidnapped the British soldier before executing him. The group however is known to frequently fabricate and exaggerate statements for propaganda purposes, meaning it remains possible he was not kidnapped or killed.

The only ISAF service member currently being held in captivity is U.S. soldier Sergeant Bowe Bergdahl from Hailey, Idaho. He went missing on June 30, 2009 when he was kidnapped by the Haqqani Network, which is affiliated with the Taliban.

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