A Finnish soldier was killed and four Norwegian soldiers were wounded Wednesday while on patrol in Afghanistan, defence officials in the Nordic countries said, confirming earlier reports from Kabul. The soldiers were hit by a roadside explosion while patrolling on foot near Maymana, Finnish defence spokesman Matti Vihurila told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa. According to Vihurila the soldier was transported to a field hospital where he later died. The Finnish defence later said the soldier was Petri Tapio Immonen, 29. Immonen was a sergeant with the Finnish border guard and had served in Afghanistan since last August. Two of the Norwegian soldiers sustained minor injuries, while two where more seriously injured, likely due to shrapnel and were taken to a field hospital in Mazar-e-Sharif, Major Tore Bjorheim of the Norwegian defence forces told dpa. Norway is currently in charge of one of the reconstruction teams in the region that is operating under the auspices of the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF). Norway has in all some 600 soldiers in Afghanistan while Finland has contributed some 100 soldiers. Finnish President Tarja Halonen and Defence Minister Jyri Hakamies expressed their condolences over the soldier's death. Norwegian Defence Minister Anne-Grete Strom-Erichsen said the attack would not lead to a withdrawl of Norwegian forces from Afghanistan.
