The New Nation - Internet Edition

AP, Kabul

Three British soldiers were killed in a suicide attack and a local reporter for the BBC was found dead Sunday as first lady Laura Bush visited Afghanistan hoping to highlight signs of progress despite a recent surge of violence.

The soldiers were killed in a suicide bombing while on foot patrol less than a mile from their base in Afghanistan's Upper Sangin Valley, the British military said. A fourth soldier was wounded. The deaths brought the British military's death toll in Afghanistan to 100 since the 2001 invasion by the U.S. and its allies.

The head of Britain's armed forces, Air Chief Marshal Sir Jock Stirrup, and Defense Secretary Des Browne released a joint statement expressing their condolences - and insisting their forces were beating back the insurgent threat.

"Make no mistake, the Taliban influence is waning, and through British blood, determination and grit, a window of opportunity has been opened," Stirrup said.

Thousands of new troops have poured into Afghanistan to try to stabilize the country, and fighting has been fierce in Helmand, the insurgent stronghold where British forces are deployed.

As of Saturday, at least 443 members of the U.S. military had died in Afghanistan, Pakistan and Uzbekistan as a result of the U.S. invasion that toppled the ruling Taliban.

Last year saw a record level of violence, with more than 8,000 people killed in insurgency-related attacks - the most since the 2001 invasion. Violence has claimed more than 1,500 lives this year.

On Sunday, insurgents attacked a police convoy in Ghazni province, killing 11 police and wounding one, said the province's deputy governor, Kazim Allayar.