Battle Afghanistan

(AFP) – 2 hours ago

KABUL — A member of the coalition force in Afghanistan died Saturday after his helicopter crashed, the military said, as two Afghan policemen died in a separate Taliban ambush.

The helicopter went down after apparently hitting a cable connecting two mountains in Kapisa province, northeast of the capital Kabul.

International troops came under fire from insurgents as they arrived at the scene to rescue two crew members, NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

"The two crew members were recovered by coalition forces, one died at the scene from injuries received in the crash," it said in a statement.

"Aircraft recovery operations and heavy fighting continue in the area. The cause of the crash is unknown and is under investigation."

It did not disclose the nationality of the dead service member, in line with policy.

The helicopter hit a cable, said Kapisa deputy provincial governor Aziz Ul Rahman.

"Initial information we have says that the helicopter of the foreign forces has hit a cable that the local people in Alasay district had erected between two mountains to ferry rocks," he said.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed its forces had shot down the helicopter, killing all those aboard. The militants are known frequently to exaggerate their claims.

The serviceman was the second from the NATO-led ISAF to die Saturday.

Another was killed separately in eastern Afghanistan, ISAF said, without giving further details.

Eastern Afghanistan, close to the border with Pakistan where insurgents have hideouts, is frequently the scene of fierce fighting.

A total of 135 foreign troops have died in Afghanistan so far this year, compared to 711 for the whole of 2010, according to the independent website iCasualties.org.

The traditional fighting season has got under way in recent weeks with the start of spring.

In a third incident Saturday, two Afghan policemen died and two more were wounded in an ambush in Nangarhar province, also in the east, claimed by the Taliban.

Afghan security forces are frequently targeted by the Taliban and other insurgents who have been waging war in the impoverished country since a US-led invasion almost ten years ago.

Copyright © 2011 AFP. All rights reserved.

http://battleafghanistan.blogspot.com/