Family and comrades of Lance Sergeant David Walker honour the memory of a ‘terrific’ family man and ‘rock-hard’ soldier

Tributes have been paid to Lance Sergeant David Walker, of 1st Battalion Scots Guards, who was killed in Afghanistan while fighting the Taliban.

Walker, 36, died on Thursday in Nad-e-Ali, an insurgent stronghold in Helmand province. He was the third British solder killed while taking part in Operation Moshtarak – a joint UK, US and Afghan assault against the Taliban.

His family released a statement which read: “We are devastated by the loss of David, who was a terrific husband and father.  Read more... (496 words, 1 image, estimated 1:59 mins reading time)

KABUL – A roadside bomb killed five Afghan border security guards traveling on a heavily used road in southern Afghanistan near the border with Pakistan on Sunday.

Gen. Abdul Raziq, a border security commander, said the bombing occurred before dawn in the Spin Boldak district of Kandahar province. The Ministry of Interior said the explosive struck an Afghan National Police vehicle, killing the five.

The attack comes amid reports that nearly a dozen militants suspected of having ties to high-ranking Taliban members were detained in separate operations Sunday, underlining the security struggle in the country’s south.  Read more... (264 words, 1 image, estimated 1:03 mins reading time)

KABUL (AFP) – Afghan and foreign troops killed 23 Taliban militants in separate operations a day after the president pledged to take responsibility for security in his new five-year term, police said Saturday.

The militants were killed on Friday in clashes with Afghan and foreign forces in southern and eastern Afghanistan, the police said.

Eleven Taliban died during an operation in Zahri district in southern Kandahar province, deputy provincial police chief Fazal Ahmad Shirzad told AFP, adding the Taliban bodies were left at the scene.

In the Sanzari area of the same district, eight Taliban were killed, he said.  Read more... (203 words, estimated 49 secs reading time)