NATO: 8 troops die in 2 days in Afghanistan

[August 12, 2011]  KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- Eight NATO service members have been killed in the past two days of fighting in Afghanistan, where the U.S.-led coalition is still mourning the deaths of 30 American troops and eight Afghans killed in the shootdown of their Chinook helicopter in the east, military officials said Friday.

The latest service member to be killed died Friday in a roadside bombing in southern Afghanistan, the coalition said. On Thursday, five U.S. troops died in a separate roadside bomb blast in the south, U.S. military officials said. No other details were released about the deaths.

Also on Thursday, a French soldier was killed when a roadside bomb exploded on a convoy 4 miles (7 kilometers) south of Tagab in Kapisa province in the east, the French defense ministry said in a statement. Four other French soldiers were wounded in the attack.

Another NATO service member died Thursday in an insurgent attack in the south, according to the U.S.-led coalition. The soldier's nationality was not disclosed.

So far this year, 377 American and other NATO service members have died in the war in Afghanistan.

Thirty U.S. troops were killed in the Aug. 6 helicopter crash in Wardak province. The coalition has said that the chopper was apparently shot down by a rocket-propelled grenade, but is investigating whether other causes contributed to the crash.

The victims included 17 members of the elite Navy SEALs, five Naval Special Warfare personnel who support the SEALs, three Air Force Special Operations personnel, an Army helicopter crew of five, seven Afghan commandos and an Afghan interpreter.

The crash comes amid fears that the country is far from stable even though U.S. and NATO forces have begun to leave Afghanistan. U.S. military officials have tried to counter those fears, saying that while the downing of the Chinook was a tragic setback, one crash will not determine the course of the war.

[Associated Press; By DEB RIECHMANN]

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