Two service-members of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan have been killed in an IED (improvised explosive device) attack in the country's south, ISAF said in a statement posted on its website late on Monday.
It, however, did not identify the deceased soldiers or reveal their nationalities in accordance with its policy of leaving casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities.
According to media estimates, at least 389 ISAF personnel, including some 297 U.S. soldiers, have been killed in Afghanistan so far this year, most of them in roadside IED attacks.
Of late, roadside bombings using IEDs have become a hallmark of Taliban strategy against NATO forces deployed in the country, as it avoids direct confrontation with the foreign troops while increasing casualties.
Notably, most of the recent ISAF casualties have been in southern Afghanistan, where the foreign coalition force is trying to retain control over territories captured from Taliban militants over the past two years.
Currently, there are over 104,900 foreign troops from more than 48 countries in Afghanistan to contain a resurgent Taliban in the war-ravaged South Asian country. The U.S. remains the single biggest contributor to the ISAF, with 68,000 soldiers on the ground.
The U.S. and other allied nations involved in the Afghan mission are currently making serious efforts to get the Afghan security forces ready and capable of handling the country's security before the planned withdrawal of coalition troops by the end of 2014.
ISAF has already begun the process of entrusting security responsibilities of several provinces to Afghan forces. However, there are wide concerns about the ability of Afghan security forces to counter Taliban insurgency without the same level of foreign military assistance and presence.
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