A US soldier in Afghanistan has died of wounds after fighting in the east of the country, the US military said today.
Another two coalition soldiers were wounded in the fighting yesterday near Shkin in Paktika province, close to the border with Pakistan.
Two enemy fighters were killed, a US military spokesman told a news briefing at Bagram air base to the north of Kabul.
The death was the fourth in just over a month from the 12,500-strong US-led force hunting Taliban and al-Qaeda militants in Afghanistan.
In late August, two US soldiers were killed near the same base at Shkin after coming under fire. Four attackers were killed in the ensuing gun battle.
Another US soldier died in an accident in late August during combat operations against Taliban guerrillas in Zabul province.
The period since early August has been the bloodiest since US-led forces toppled the Taliban in late 2001, with about 300 people killed, among them civilians, aid workers, police, militiamen and many guerrillas.