Up to 11 soldiers with the NATO-led coalition or International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) have been killed in Taliban-related attacks and bomb blasts across Afghanistan since Aug 1.
In the latest fatality received by the military alliance, a soldier with ISAF lost his life in an insurgent attack in the eastern part of the country on Tuesday, the coalition forces confirmed in a statement. “An International Security Assistance Force service member died following an insurgent attack in eastern Afghanistan today,” the ISAF statement released here Tuesday morning said.
However, it did not reveal the nationality of the victim and did not provide details about the exact place of attack under the ISAF policy, saying “it is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities.” Troops mostly from the U.S. have been stationed in the eastern region.
In a related incident, another soldier with the alliance lost his life in the troubled southern region, ISAF confirmed in a separate statement released here. “An International Security Assistance Force service member died following an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) attack in southern Afghanistan today,” the statement said without providing more details.
Also on Tuesday, a car suicide attacked targeted a joint military base in Logar province 60 km south of capital Kabul, killing and injuring some Afghans and foreigners, according to locals.
On Monday, a foreign soldier with the NATO-led coalition lost his life in an insurgent attack in southern region.
Two New Zealand soldiers with the ISAF were killed in an insurgent attack in the relatively peaceful central Bamyan province over the weekend. The insurgent used small arm fire and RPG-7 in attack against the forces, according to media reports.
New Zealand has 189 soldiers within the framework of the NATO- led ISAF mainly stationed in relatively peace Bamyan province.
Two U.S. soldiers were killed in an IED attack in southern Kandahar province on Saturday. The simple but difficult-to-be-detected Taliban weapon, the IED, is used in making suicide vests and roadside bombs and has proved a challenge for Afghan and NATO-led forces in the insurgency-hit country.
Two other U.S. soldiers with the NATO-led coalition were killed in an IED attack in eastern Paktika province on Aug. 1.
Also on Aug. 1, two American soldiers lost their lives in two separate IED explosions in Salim Aka area of Kandahar and the neighboring Helmand province.
Currently over 130,000 NATO-led ISAF troops with majority of them Americans have been serving in Afghanistan since the collapse of regime in late 2001. The latest casualties bring the number of service members with the NATO-led forces that have been killed in Afghanistan to 276 so far this year.
