Soldier shot dead by insurgents in Helmand

A soldier was shot dead in Afghanistan yesterday, the Ministry of Defence said.

The member of the 2nd Battalion, the Mercian Regiment, was killed when his patrol was attacked in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand Province.

He suffered a fatal gunshot wound, the MoD said. His family have been told.

Task Force Helmand spokesman Lieutenant Colonel Gordon Mackenzie said the soldier's loss would be "deeply felt"; 384 British troops have died in Afghanistan since 2001.