Roadside bomb kills NATO soldier in southern Afghanistan

[News_Editor]

Roadside bomb kills NATO soldier in southern Afghanistan

2011-08-23 20:25:15 GMT+7 (ICT)

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

ISAF said one of its service members was killed in southern Afghanistan as a result of an improvised explosive device (IED) attack. As usual, the multinational force gave no other details about the incident, including the exact location.

The nationality of the service member was also not immediately disclosed by ISAF. "It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities," a brief statement said.

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.

There are currently more than 132,000 ISAF troops in Afghanistan, including some 90,000 U.S. troops and more than 9,500 British soldiers. U.S. President Barack Obama previously ordered a drawdown of 10,000 American troops later this year, with another 23,000 U.S. troops to return home next year.

So far this year, at least 406 coalition service members have been killed in Afghanistan. Most troops are American and are killed in the country's south, which is plagued by IED attacks on troops and civilians. The deadliest incident happened earlier this month when a U.S. helicopter crashed in eastern Afghanistan, killing 30 U.S. troops, seven Afghan troops and an Afghan interpreter.

On Monday, Australian Private Matthew Lambert was killed in the Khas Uruzgan District of Uruzgan province when a roadside bomb struck his patrol. Another ISAF service member, whose nationality was not disclosed, was seriously injured.

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