Kabul, May 31: Two more Australian soldiers have been killed in separate incidents in war-weary Afghanistan, Australia’s Defense Department says.
The incidents on Monday brought the number of Australians killed in the conflict in the Asian country to 26, AFP reported on Tuesday.
One of the soldiers that lost his life was shot by an Afghan National Army trooper in the Chora Valley. The motive behind the killing is not yet known.
The other soldier died in a Chinook helicopter crash a few hours later, the report added.
“It was with immense sorrow that I am here this morning to announce the death of two Australian soldiers in Afghanistan in two separate incidents overnight,” Australian Defense force chief Angus Houston said.
A total of 214 US-led troops have been killed in the war-torn country so far this year, according to a tally compiled by the independent website icasualties.org.
Troop commanders have warned of another tough period ahead after Afghan militants announced the beginning of their spring offensive at the end of last month. Foreign casualties are expected to rise as the militants prepare for their long-expected spring offensive.
The number of mortalities among foreign soldiers in the violence-wracked country stood at 711 in 2010.
Last year was the deadliest on record for Australian troops in Afghanistan, accounting for nearly half of the country’s total fatalities since 2001. Some 1,550 Australian soldiers have been deployed to Afghanistan as part of the US-led foreign occupation force.
Roadside bombs and Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) are by far the most lethal weapon Taliban militants have used against foreign troops, Afghan forces and even civilians.
——–Agencies