British soldier killed in Afghanistan
Updated on 04 January 2010
A British soldier has been killed in an explosion while on foot patrol in Southern Afghanistan, taking the total number of British casualties to 246 since 2001.
The Ministry of Defence said the soldier from the 1st Battalion The Royal Anglian Regiment died in the Nad-e Ali area yesterday.
The soldier's next of kin have been informed.
Lieutenant Colonel David Wakefield, a spokesman for Task Force Helmand, said "His dauntless courage and his sacrifice will not be forgotten."
The soldier is the first British fatality in Afghanistan this year, and his death takes the number of British service personnel who have died since 2001 to 246.
2009 was the bloodiest year for British forces since the Falklands war, with a 108 British service personnel dying while serving in Afghanistan.
