Two U.S. soldiers killed by Afghan soldier, civilian

[News_Editor]

Two U.S. soldiers killed by Afghan soldier, civilian

2012-03-02 09:21:49 GMT+7 (ICT)

KANDAHAR, Afghanistan (BNO NEWS) -- Two American service members were shot dead Thursday by two Afghan gunmen, at least one of them an Afghan National Army (ANA) soldier, at a joint base in southern Afghanistan, officials said. The attackers were also killed.

The incident happened on late Thursday morning when two individuals, one of them an Afghan soldier and another in civilian clothing, opened fire at NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) soldiers at a joint base in Kandahar, the capital of the province which carries the same name.

As a result of the shooting attack, two U.S. soldiers were killed while a third U.S. service member was injured, although his or her condition was not immediately released. Security forces quickly returned fire, killing both assailants at the scene.

Taliban spokesman Qari Yousuf Ahmadi claimed responsibility for the attack and identified the Afghan soldier as Abd-ur-Rahman. "An Islam-loving Afghan soldier, out of true spirit of faith, shot and killed two American troops and wounded another," he said. "The U.S. invaders were killed in retaliation for [the] burning of the copies of Holy Quran by the American occupation forces [at] Bagram Airbase a couple of days ago, triggering a fierce widespread protest across the country."

U.S. troops have been accused of burning Qurans at the Bagram Airbase, triggering a series of violent protests across Afghanistan which have left dozens of people killed. Four U.S. soldiers were previously killed in attacks which were claimed to be retaliation attacks, forcing ISAF to recall all military advisers from Afghan ministries.

Thursday's deaths raise the number of coalition troops killed in Afghanistan so far this year to 60, according to official figures. A total of 566 ISAF troops were killed in Afghanistan in 2011, down from 711 fatalities in 2010.

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