UK soldier killed, another badly hurt in Afghanistan

LONDON, Sep 1 (Reuters) One British soldier was killed and another badly wounded in an attack by guerrillas in southern Afghanistan today, the British defence ministry said.

The soldier, whose name was not released, is the seventh British soldier killed in fighting in Helmand province since the beginning of August.

Britain has faced unexpectedly fierce resistance from Taliban fighters since sending the first large foreign force to Helmand this year as part of an expanding NATO peacekeeping mission.

A senior British commander said last week that Britain's NATO troops in southern Afghanistan were pulling back from mountain redoubts to focus on safeguarding reconstruction in lowland valleys.

Britain has had to increase its initial force in the area by about 1,000 troops to 4,500. The British military has little slack for further reinforcements for Afghanistan while it also keeps 7,000 men in Iraq.

A senior British official said this week that foreign fighters were starting to appear among Taliban forces fighting British troops in southern Afghanistan. He said British troops had killed hundreds of insurgents over the summer.

REUTERS AB VV2303