Aussie soldier killed in S Afghanistan

An Australian soldier has been killed during an operation in southern Afghanistan where a large cache of munitions belonging to militants was destroyed.

The latest casualty is the 27th Australian death in the Afghan conflict and the fourth in two weeks.

Australian Defense Force chief Marshal Angus Houston said early on Tuesday that the 23-year-old combat engineer was killed in Helmand province late on Monday.

Houston stated that the munitions cache included 70 anti-personnel mines, which are often used by militants to make improvised explosive devices (IED). IED’s have been the main weapon the militants have used to attack US-led troops and convoys

Australia has reportedly deployed over 1,500 troops in Afghanistan and is the largest contributor to the US-led force in the war-ravaged country outside NATO.

As the US-led force casualties persistently climb in Afghanistan, public opinion in the United States and other Western countries is increasingly turning against the Afghan war.