The latest casualty, from 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment, was caught in a blast in an area in the south of the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand Province.

 

A spokesman for Task Force Helmand, Lieutenant Colonel David Eastman, said: "Unfortunately I must announce the loss of a soldier from 2nd Battalion The Parachute Regiment this morning.

"The soldier was patrolling to reassure the population of an area in the south of Nahr-e Saraj when he was struck by the blast from an improvised explosive device (IED).

 

"Sadly the insurgents have resorted to planting explosives that target innocent civilians and soldiers indiscriminately, without care for the impact that they have or the destruction they cause", Lieutenant Colonel David Eastman said.

"The soldier gave his life trying to defend against such senseless inhumanity."

The number of UK military personnel who have died since operations in Afghanistan began in 2001 now totals 357.

 

The death follows the earlier announcement of two further military fatalities in a fire at Camp Bastion. These latest deaths come as a British commander said the tide was turning against the insurgency in Helmand Province, with morale high among troops.

Brigadier James Chiswell, head of UK forces in Helmand, said: "There's certainly a sense over this winter period that the insurgency is under a lot of pressure.

"But perhaps more importantly there's certainly a sense of growing local confidence to shake off the insurgency, and indeed to put their trust in the state."

He also sounded a note of caution, however, warning it would not be possible to tell just how successful the past few months had been until the summer.