KABUL, Feb. 15 (Press TV) -- A British soldier has been shot dead in an attack in southern Afghanistan, bringing to 398 the number of UK troops killed in the war-torn country since the start of Afghan war in 2001.





The airman from the Royal Air Force Regiment lost his life on a routine patrol mission in the Nad-e Ali district of Helmand province, the British defense ministry quoted Lieutenant Colonel Gordon Mackenzie as saying on Monday.



Britain, which has some 9,500 troops in Afghanistan, intends to withdraw its soldiers from the country by 2015.



According to official figures released by the website icasualties.org, a total of 39 foreign troops have been killed in war-battered Afghanistan so far this year.



The increasing number of military casualties in Afghanistan has caused widespread anger in the US and other NATO member states, undermining public support for the war effort.



Insecurity continues to rise across Afghanistan despite the presence of some 130,000 US-led forces in the war-battered country.