3 men in Afghan police uniform kill NATO soldier in restive south

KABUL, June 19 (Xinhua) -- Three men in Afghan police uniform shot dead a NATO solider in southern Afghanistan on Monday, the NATO-led forces said on Tuesday.

"The International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) confirms that three individuals in Afghan police uniforms turned their weapons against coalition service members in southern Afghanistan yesterday, killing one ISAF service member," the NATO-led ISAF said in a statement in early Tuesday morning.

The three individuals immediately fled the area and are currently being sought, the statement added without saying if there were any injuries on the coalition's forces.

The incident is under investigation, the ISAF statement said, without disclosing the nationality of the victim under the ISAF policy.

Troops mainly from the United States, Britain and Australia have been stationed in the southern region within the framework of ISAF to curb Taliban-linked insurgency there.

The Taliban insurgent group announced on May 2 that they would launch a spring offensive dubbed "Al-Farooq" from May 3 across the country to target foreign and Afghan troops as well as legislators and government functionaries.

The Monday's incident was the 16th of its kind so far this year, leaving at least 18 foreign soldiers dead and several others injured across the militancy-hit country.

Two British soldiers with the ISAF were killed when two men in Afghan police uniform opened fire in southern Helmand province on May 12 this year.

from XINHUA
2012-06-19 11:14:25

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ISAF Release:

ISAF casualty (update)

2012-06-C-033 For Immediate Release NOTE: This is an update to press release #2012-06-C-031 sent June 18 at 4:56 a.m.		KABUL, Afghanistan (June 19, 2012) — The International Security Assistance Force confirms that three individuals in Afghan Police uniforms turned their weapons against coalition service members in southern Afghanistan yesterday, killing one ISAF service member.The three individuals immediately fled the area and are currently being sought. The incident is under investigation. It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities.

 

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Posted in: Afghan National Police, Afghanistan, International Security Assistance Force, ISAF, Kabul, NATO, Taliban