UK soldier killed in Afghanistan blast

LONDON, March 6 (KUNA) -- A British soldier has died from wounds sustained in an explosion in southern Afghanistan, the UK Ministry of Defence (MOD) said Saturday. The serviceman from the "3 Rifles" company was killed yesterday morning whilst on foot patrol near Sangin in Helmand Province. His death is not linked to the ongoing Moshtarak operation. Next of kin have been informed. The solider was on a foot patrol to the south-west of Patrol Base Blenheim when he was struck by an explosion, a spokesman for the MOD said. The latest death takes the number of British casualties since fighting began in Afghanistan in 2001 to 269. It is the second fatality to hit "3 Rifles" in the past few days. Last Tuesday Corporal Richard Green, 23 was shot dead while at a checkpoint near Sangin. There are about 9,500 UK troops in Afghanistan, the majority in the southern Helmand province, a hotbed of the insurgency. (end) he.ajs KUNA 061434 Mar 10NNNN