Three Paras killed by Taliban blast

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The soldiers died after their Jackal armoured vehicle was hit by an explosion north of Lashkar Gah in Helmand Province on Thursday afternoon.

They were carrying out a routine security patrol alongside Afghan security forces when their vehicle was hit by an explosion before coming under small arms fire, said the Ministry of Defence.

It is understood they belonged to the recently-formed Special Forces Support Group (SFSG). It is thought that the three soldiers, from the Parachute Regiment, were killed in the initial blast. A fourth member of the patrol was injured and remains in a critical condition. Their families have been informed.

The SFSG, which was set up in April 2006, is largely made up of personnel from the Parachute Regiment, the Royal Marines and the RAF Regiment.

Its main role is to provide direct support for UK special forces missions, but it is also involved in domestic counter-terrorism operations.

There has been heated debate about whether British troops in Afghanistan are being provided with the vehicles they need to protect themselves against the threat of Taliban improvised explosive devices.

The deaths took the number of British troops who have died in Afghanistan since operations began in October 2001 to 195. A record 22 were killed last month.

Meanwhile, people lined the streets of Wooton Bassett in Wiltshire to pay tribute to a soldier killed in southern Afghanistan.

The body of Craftsman Anthony Lombardi, 21, of Scunthorpe, North Lincolnshire, from the Royal Electrical and Mechanical Engineers, was flown back to the UK following his death in Babaji, Helmand, on Tuesday. His commanding officer described him as the "life and soul" of his group.