A soldier from the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) died from wounds sustained in small-arms fire during a patrol in eastern Afghan province of Nuristan Saturday, said an ISAF statement.
“The soldier was evacuated to an ISAF medical facility where he died of wounds,” the statement said.
“ISAF remains committed to rebuilding Afghanistan, a cause for which this soldier gave his life,” said Lt. Col. Claudia Foss, an ISAF spokesman.
ISAF is currently investigating the incident, said the statement.
In accordance with ISAF policy, the name and nationality of the soldier are being withheld pending notification of the next of kin.
Rising militancy-related violence killed over 6,000 people in Afghanistan last year and analysts and NATO commanders have expected an upsurge of guerrilla-style attacks by Taliban militants in 2008.