By FISNIK ABRASHI, Associated Press
KABUL, Afghanistan - An Afghan policeman opened fire and tossed a hand grenade on a U.S. military patrol in eastern Afghanistan, killing an American soldier, the U.S. military said Thursday.
It was the second time in less than a month that an Afghan officer has killed a U.S. soldier, raising concerns that militants may have infiltrated the Afghan police force.
In the latest attack, a police officer on a tower attacked the American foot patrol in Bermel district of the eastern Paktika province, the military said. The troops returned fire on the tower, killing the policemen.
The military said it was investigating the attack.
Last month, an Afghan policeman opened fire on U.S. troops at a police station in Paktia province in eastern Afghanistan, killing an American soldier and wounding three other troops. U.S. forces then killed the policeman.
The shooting took place after American troops and Afghan police brought suspected militants to the station.
Separately, a U.S.-led coalition member was killed and several others were wounded also in eastern Afghanistan after "a possible errant mortar round" aimed for insurgents hit their patrol, the U.S. military said. The statement did not say where it happened.
Elsewhere Thursday, insurgents kept up their assault on a key southern Afghan town, firing a rocket into a market that killed a civilian and wounded five others, a local official said.
The attack on Lashkar Gah, the capital of the southern Helmand province, follows two other assaults this week on the security checkpoints that ring the city. More than 80 militants were killed and three police were wounded.
The attacks on the city, the capital of the world's largest opium producing region, appears to signal the Taliban's intention to disrupt a major government center.
Large-scale Taliban attacks on major Afghan towns have been rare since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion. Fighting typically takes place in small villages and rural areas.
Thursday's rocket landed on a street lined with shops, said Daud Ahmadi, the spokesman for the provincial governor.
The Associated Press | The essential global news network
KABUL, Afghanistan - An Afghan policeman opened fire and tossed a hand grenade on a U.S. military patrol in eastern Afghanistan, killing an American soldier, the U.S. military said Thursday.
It was the second time in less than a month that an Afghan officer has killed a U.S. soldier, raising concerns that militants may have infiltrated the Afghan police force.
In the latest attack, a police officer on a tower attacked the American foot patrol in Bermel district of the eastern Paktika province, the military said. The troops returned fire on the tower, killing the policemen.
The military said it was investigating the attack.
Last month, an Afghan policeman opened fire on U.S. troops at a police station in Paktia province in eastern Afghanistan, killing an American soldier and wounding three other troops. U.S. forces then killed the policeman.
The shooting took place after American troops and Afghan police brought suspected militants to the station.
Separately, a U.S.-led coalition member was killed and several others were wounded also in eastern Afghanistan after "a possible errant mortar round" aimed for insurgents hit their patrol, the U.S. military said. The statement did not say where it happened.
Elsewhere Thursday, insurgents kept up their assault on a key southern Afghan town, firing a rocket into a market that killed a civilian and wounded five others, a local official said.
The attack on Lashkar Gah, the capital of the southern Helmand province, follows two other assaults this week on the security checkpoints that ring the city. More than 80 militants were killed and three police were wounded.
The attacks on the city, the capital of the world's largest opium producing region, appears to signal the Taliban's intention to disrupt a major government center.
Large-scale Taliban attacks on major Afghan towns have been rare since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion. Fighting typically takes place in small villages and rural areas.
Thursday's rocket landed on a street lined with shops, said Daud Ahmadi, the spokesman for the provincial governor.
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