2 More UK Soldiers Killed in Afganistan

Two more British soldiers have died in southern Afghanistan, taking the death toll to nine in nine days, The Press Association reports.

Photo: 2 More UK Soldiers Killed in Afganistan

The Ministry of Defence said that the two troopers were killed yesterday in separate incidents in Helmand Province, where battle groups are engaged in a major offensive against Taleban insurgents. It means British forces are suffering their highest attritional rate of fatalities since the Falklands War, Times Online reports.

One soldier was killed in an explosion and the second died from a gunshot wound. Their next of kin have been informed, the Ministry of Defence said.

The soldiers, who died on Thursday, were from 4th Battalion The Rifles and Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment.

The number of UK soldiers killed in Afghanistan since 2001 is now 178.

The soldier from 4th Battalion The Rifles was killed in a blast while on foot patrol near Nad Ali on Thursday afternoon.

The soldier from Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment, attached to 1st Battalion Welsh Guards, was killed during an engagement with insurgent forces near Lashkar Gah on Thursday evening, BBC News reports.

On Wednesday, Defence Secretary Bob Ainsworth said more lives would be lost in the current conflict and described the situation in Afghanistan as serious.

"We are engaged in a war against a dangerous and highly adaptable foe whose tactics and capabilities evolve as quickly as ours," he said.

"We strive to provide our troops with the support they need but the nature of the fight means we will take more casualties before we succeed," Reuters reports.