Three NATO soldiers were killed in incidents in southern Afghanistan, while Afghan and coalition troops killed five Taliban fighters in the central region, dpa quoted officials as saying today. Taliban militants in the northern province of Kunduz also killed three men suspected of spying for the government, officials said. One NATO soldier died in a vehicle accident, while two others were killed by separate roadside bombs, the alliance said. All the three soldiers were killed on Monday in the volatile southern region. The Canadian Defence Ministry identified one of the victims as Craig Blake, stationed in the Panjwayee district of the southern province of Kandahar when the incident occurred. Blake was killed by a bomb about 25 kilometres south-east of Kandahar city, the ministry said in a statement on its website. NATO did not reveal the nationalities of the other two soldiers. Most of the foreign troops stationed in the southern provinces are from the US, Britain and the Netherlands. A total of 176 NATO soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan this year, according to ICasualties.org, an independent website that tracks military casualties in Iraq and Afghanistan. Most of the soldiers who have died so far this year were killed by roadside bombs, according to NATO officials. Elsewhere, four Afghan soldiers were injured in a mine explosion in Andar district of southern province of Ghazni on Monday, the Defence Ministry said in a statement on Tuesday. -- SPA
