Finnish peacekeeper killed in Afghanistan
(AFP and NTB)
A Finnish peacekeeper died of wounds received in a roadside bomb attack in Maimana in Afghanistan Wednesday morning, the Finnish Defence Command said in a statement.
The Finnish soldier was part of an infantry patrol that also included two Norwegian peacekeepers. The patrol was protecting hospital staff, part of the International Security Assistance Force (Isaf), when the bomb exploded at about 9am Finnish time (GMT+2).
The Finn died about an hour after the explosion. Also the Norwegians were wounded.
An Afghan intelligence official was quoted as saying by Agence France-Presse that the bomb might have been remote-controlled.
Norwegian news agency Norsk Telegrambyrå (NTB) reported that four Norwegians were slightly wounded, whereas according to the Finnish defence ministry, three Norwegians were wounded.
The Finnish Defence Forces told the Finnish News Agency (STT) that another Finnish peacekeeper had been near the accident and escaped unscathed.
Jyri Häkämies (cons), the Finnish defence minister, conveyed his condolences to the family of the killed soldier and said the exact course of the events had yet to be established. He told STT that Finland had not yet drawn any conclusions about the future of Finland’s participation in the Afghanistan operation.
Jens Stoltenberg, the prime minister of Norway, told the country’s Parliament that Norway did not intend to pull out its troops from Afghanistan. A Norwegian soldier was killed in Kabul in 2004.
Tarja Halonen, the president of Finland, issued her condolences to the family of the Finnish soldier.
The Finnish government honoured the casualty with a moment of silence.