Kabul: Two NATO soldiers were killed in
an insurgent attack in the south of Afghanistan today, as the
death toll for foreign forces in the country mounted.
The soldiers, whose nationalities were not released,
are part of NATO`s International Security Assistance Force,
whose estimated 142,000 troops in Afghanistan are set to
increase to 150,000 by August.
Their deaths take to 271 the number of foreign
soldiers killed in Afghanistan this year, according to an AFP
tally based on figures kept by the independent icasualties.org
website.
Last year, 520 NATO troops were killed in Afghanistan
in what was then the deadliest year for foreign forces since
the 2001 US-led invasion brought down the Taliban regime.
The rising death toll is unwelcome news for Washington
and its allies, whose electorates are increasingly frustrated
by casualties in a seemingly endless and far away war.
The Pentagon said this week US-led forces are making
headway against the Taliban, but it was "overshadowed" by
violence in southern provinces and what it called an overly
gloomy portrayal of the war shaped by media coverage.
US president Barack Obama has ordered a surge of
troops into the country that will see numbers peak at 150,000
this year, before an intended drawdown in 2011.
PTI
