U.S. service member killed in combat in Afghanistan
KABUL (Reuters) - A U.S. service member died on Thursday after being wounded during a combat operation in eastern Afghanistan, the U.S. military said in a statement.
An Afghan security force member was also killed and several were wounded in the incident, less than a week after a U.S. soldier was killed in an insider attack in southern Afghanistan.
Eastern Afghanistan, where U.S. Special Forces units have regularly been deployed against Islamic State militants, has been one of the deadliest areas for the U.S. military since its main combat operation against the Taliban ended in 2014.
The latest death was the third in the eastern region since the start of the year after a service member was killed and four wounded during operations in Nangarhar province in January and another was killed in Kapisa province in April.
Thursday's incident occurred on the same day that NATO leaders were discussing Afghanistan at a summit in Brussels where U.S. President Donald Trump pressured allies to lift their defense spending.
U.S. officials have said the United States is preparing to undertake a review of its strategy in Afghanistan, a year after Trump authorized thousands more troops and greater use of air power in a bid to force the Taliban to accept peace talks.
On the same day the U.S. service member was killed, dozens of Afghan soldiers were also killed in a series of incidents across the country that underlined how precarious the situation remains in Afghanistan.
(Reporting by James Mackenzie; Editing by Robin Pomeroy)
