Suspected Taliban ambushed a U.S.-led coalition and Afghan patrol in the volatile south, sparking a battle and air strikes that killed 25 insurgents, officials said Monday. The coalition said the joint forces were attacked while on patrol in the Sang in district of Helmand province on Sunday. An estimated 50 Taliban reinforcement fighters came by foot and boat along the Helmand river from surrounding areas to join the attack, the coalition said in a statement. Coalition air strikes bombed seven compounds in the area, resulting in three secondary explosions from suspected weapons caches, it said. It said there were «several» confirmed militant deaths during the 14-hour battle and no reports of civilian injuries. The Afghan Defense Ministry said the clash and air strikes in Sangin killed 25 suspected Taliban, including a group leader identified as Mullah Younus. Meanwhile, a British soldier died on Sunday of wounds from an accident at a British military base in Sangin, the British Ministry of Defense was quoted as saying by the Associated Press.
