55 rebels, NATO soldier killed in Afghanistan

The NATO-led force killed 55 suspected Taliban insurgents while one of their soldier died in southern.

The NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) killed 55 suspected Taliban insurgents in fighting in southern Afghanistan while one ISAF soldier died and eight others were injured, officials said on Sunday.

HT Image

"ISAF and Afghan Army forces came under fire from between 100 and 150 insurgents in the vicinity of an ISAF forward operating base in the Chora Valley, north of Tarin Kowt, the capital of Uruzgan province," ISAF said in a statement.

In a battle lasting several hours, ISAF and the Afghan Army engaged the insurgents with the help of attack helicopters and close air support, the statement added.

"Initial battle damage assessment indicates that up to 55 insurgents were killed," it said.

One ISAF soldier was killed and eight others were wounded when their convoy was caught in a blast of an improvised explosive device Saturday in the same province, the NATO-led forces said in separate statement.