Two British soldiers shot dead in Lashkar Gah
IRNA - Islamic Republic News Agency
London, July 22, IRNA -- Two British soldiers have been shot dead while trying to rescue a wounded colleague in Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defence announced Thursday.
The latest victims, which bring the total number of British deaths in Afghanistan to 324, were killed in the Lashkar Gah district of Helmand on Wednesday evening while performing a "courageous and selfless act", a military spokesman said.
Although the majority of troop deaths have been caused by roadside bombs, there has been a notable rise in the number shootings this year.
It was also unusual for such an attack to occur in Lashkar Gah, where foreign forces have been the longest and is often thought of as the safest place in an otherwise dangerous province.
British troops are currently suffering record casualties, with 79 killed so far this year, including 35 since the beginning of June. According to the Medical Research Council, the UK death rate is higher than that suffered during the Russian invasion of Afghanistan.
On Wednesday, the government was accused of sending “mixed messages” about Britain’s withdrawal plans, with Prime Minister David Cameron saying UK soldiers are “not going to be” in a combat role by 2015, but his deputy Nick Clegg insisting that "no timetable can be chiselled in stone.”
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End News / IRNA / News Code 1240951
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