British soldier shot dead in southern Afghanistan

A British soldier has been shot dead during a patrol in the south of Nahr-e Saraj district in Helmand province, in Afghanistan, the British Ministry of Defence said. The soldier, a serviceman from the 3rd Battalion, the Yorkshire Regiment, is the 417th British soldier killed since operations in Afghanistan began in October 2001. Earlier on Friday, another British soldier, Cpl Michael John Thacker from 1st Battalion, was also shot dead at the same place in Nahr-e Saraj while  on an observation post and died of his injuries despite receiving medical attention, the BBC rreported. The 27-year-old Thacker was born in Swindon, Wiltshire, and had served in Northern Ireland, Iraq and Afghanistan. Keeping around 9500 soldiers in Afghanistan, mainly in Helmand Province, the UK said it will pull back troops some time before 2015.