NATO chopper crash breaks Afghan war toll record

"The cause of the crash is under investigation," the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said. "There are no reports of enemy fire in the area."

Another NATO soldier was injured, along with an Afghan soldier and a US civilian, ISAF said, but it did not identify the nationalities of the dead troops and did not give further details on where the crash took place.

The incident brings to 529 the number of foreign troops killed this year, according to an AFP tally based on the count kept by icasualties.org, surpassing the previous record of 521 deaths in 2009.

Chrono: Deadliest days for NATO in Afghan campaign

A total of 2,097 coalition troops have now died since the US-led invasion of 2001 which ousted the hardline Islamist Taliban regime and set off a brutal insurgency which has also killed thousands of Afghans.

The US Marines and US Army dominate the foreign forces concentrated in hotspots of the southern provinces of Kandahar and Helmand.

After only nine months, 2010 has now become the deadlist year of the long war, with the extra deployment of international forces to nearly 150,000 drawing more battlefield engagements, and leading to a spike in casualties.

June was the deadliest month of the war for coalition troops, with 103 fatalities, according to an AFP count based on the independent icasualties.org figures.

Ten foreign troops, mostly American, were killed in a wave of attacks across the country on June 22, and another 10 ISAF soldiers died in bombing attacks in the south and east on June 7.

Until recently NATO identified American casualties, while leaving coalition partners to identify their own dead separately. That changed earlier this month and US casualties are no longer revealed.

The United States and NATO have increased to almost 150,000 the number troops trying to quell the insurgency which has spread across the country with the Taliban now present in almost every one of the 34 provinces.

Their influence is strongest in the south and the eastern provinces which border Pakistan, where the Taliban leadership is said to be taking refuge, and from where attacks on Afghan targets are planned and funded.

US President Barack Obama ordered up an extra 30,000 forces in December as part of a renewed counter-insurgency strategy focusing on the south.

US Defence Secretary Robert Gates said last week that US strategy appeared to be working and that he was cautiously optimistic at signs of progress.

Obama has issued a deadline of mid-2011 for United States forces to begin drawing down, adding a sense of urgency to such tasks as training of Afghan forces so they can take over responsibility for the country's security.

Nine foreign troops were killed in a NATO helicopter crash in southern Afghanistan on Tuesday, the military alliance said, taking the overall death to

Two NATO troops, an Afghan soldier and a US civilian, were also injured, NATO's International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said in a statement.

"The cause of the crash is under investigation," it said. "There are no reports of enemy fire in the area."

Chrono: Deadliest days for NATO in Afghan campaign

It gave no details on the nationalities of those killed or the exact location of the crash.

The four injured people had been taken to an ISAF medical facility, the statement said.

The crash has raised the death toll among foreign troops in Afghanistan this year to 529, according to an AFP toll based on the icasualties.org website, surpassing the figure of 521 for 2009.

A total of 2,097 coalition troops have now died since the US-led invasion of 2001 which ousted the Taliban regime.

First Army Chaplain Killed in Action Since Vietnam

Capt. Dale Goetz of the 4th Infantry Division stationed at Colorado's Fort Carson has become the first U.S. military chaplain killed in action since the Vietnam War.

Goetz and four others were killed in Afghanistan on Monday. They were traveling in a convoy that was attacked by insurgents, who used an improvised explosive device.

Goetz left the First Baptist Church in White, S.D. in 2003 to begin training for his work as a chaplain. Church trustee David Lucas said he was concerned about a shortage of chaplains in the military.

"I know for sure he was there asking them, 'Where are you at with the Lord' and do you know the Lord is your personal Savoir?'" Lucas said. "'And if not, I can help you get there.'"

Goetz joined the U.S. Army in 2000 and was previously deployed to Iraq in 2004. He leaves behind a wife and three sons.

Hard Times for Christian Aid Groups in Afghanistan and Somalia. 17 murdered and 19 abducted this year

17 Aid Workers murdered and 19 abducted this year.

It's been a bad week for Christian aid groups in two of the world’s most challenging nations.

In Afghanistan, ten workers for the International Assistance Mission (IAM) were found shot in the northeastern region of Badakhshan. Beyond veteran ophthalmologist and team leader Tom Little, whose wife recently wrote for CT on the Christian call to suffering in mission, the now-identified dead include Glenn D. Lapp, who worked with the Mennonite Central Committee, and 32-year-old Cheryl Beckett, a pastor’s daughter from Tennessee and a graduate of Indiana Wesleyan University. Out of the 1,500 aid groups registered in Afghanistan, 17 aid workers have been murdered and 19 abducted this year.

Afghanistan Suspends 2 Christian Aid Groups

Afganisthan PM Kazai.

Afghanistan suspended two church-based aid groups on Monday over allegations that the organizations are proselytizing in the Islamic country.

Church World Service and Norwegian Church Aid cannot operate while authorities investigate the claim.

“We are not proselytizing,” said Maurice Bloem, deputy director for international programs at CWS, to The Christian Post. “If you would speak with the local community and organizations they will confirm that we stick to the code of conduct for an NGO (non-governmental organization), which is you should do your work and not proselytize.”