A British soldier has been killed in an explosion while on patrol in violence-wracked southern Afghanistan, the Ministry of Defense says. The British Ministry said in a statement said that the soldier from the 45 Commando Royal Marines was injured Monday morning on patrol in the Kajaki area of Helmand Province. The statement added that the soldier received medical treatment at the scene but died of his wounds while being taken to a military hospital.
He was the 126th British army soldier to die in Afghanistan since the 2001 US-led invasion to oust the Taliban.
Britain has about 8,000 troops in Afghanistan, the second-largest contributor of foreign forces in the country after the United States. Many British soldiers are based in Helmand where they are engaged in fierce fighting with resurgent Taliban fighters.