A decorated Australian special forces soldier has been killed and five other soldiers wounded during two separate attacks in Afghanistan.
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The Chief of the Defence Force Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston said Sergeant Brett Wood, 32, from Victoria, was killed about 11pm AEST yesterday, while conducting clearance operations in southern Afghanistan.
An improvised explosive device detonated, killing Sergeant Wood and seriously wounding two others.
Advertisement: Story continues below The men, all members of the elite 2nd Commando Regiment, were on foot at the time.
Air Chief Marshal Houston would not go into further detail about the incident, citing operational concerns.
Three more soldiers working with an Afghan Provincial Response Company were wounded in a separate incident, which occurred yesterday evening AEST.
"There was a gunfire exchange and they sustained fragmentation," Air Chief Marshal Houston said, adding that he expected them to be discharged from a medical facility in Tarin Kowt later today.
Air Chief Marshal Houston described Sergeant Wood as a "decorated warrior" with more than 15 years' service in the Australian Defence Force.
"He was a magnificent soldier who has had some incredible operational experiences," he said.
Sergeant Wood was awarded the Medal for Gallantry in 2006 after leading a commando team in extremely hazardous circumstances in the Chora Valley.
"I am told that Brett was a highly professional, dedicated and an exceptionally nice guy," Air Chief Marshal Houston said.
"Brett's loss will be deeply felt across Australia's special forces community as he was an inspirational leader and a popular and highly respected member of his unit."
This was Sergeant Wood's third deployment in Afghanistan. He also served in Papua New Guinea, East Timor and Iraq, Air Chief Marshal Houston said.
He is survived by his wife.
His two colleagues were flown to a medical facility where they are listed as seriously ill.
"To the families of those wounded, I want them to know their loved ones are receiving the best possible treatment and will continue to act in their best interests as they recover," Air Chief Marshal said.
Last night it was reported that a roadside bomb attack in eastern Afghanistan had killed four soldiers in the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force.
"Four International Security Assistance Force service members died following an improvised explosive device attack in eastern Afghanistan today," ISAF said.
"It is ISAF policy to defer casualty identification procedures to the relevant national authorities."
ISAF did not give further details of who was involved, what exactly happened or where it occurred, in line with policy.
Sergeant Wood is the 24th Australian soldier to be killed in Afghanistan since 2002 when Operation Slipper began.
Corporal Richard Atkinson, 22, and Sapper Jamie Larcombe, 21, were both killed during separate incidents in the country in February.
A total of 184 international troops have been killed in Afghanistan so far this year, according to a tally kept by the independent website icasualties.org. That compares with a tally of 711 for last year.
Troop commanders have warned of another hard period ahead after the Taliban announced the start of their spring offensive at the end of last month.
The US commander of foreign troops on the ground, US General David Petraeus, warned in a memo released on Saturday that fighting was at a "pivotal moment" and ISAF soldiers faced "difficult situations" ahead.
There are about 130,000 international troops in Afghanistan, about 90,000 of them from the United States.
Limited foreign troop withdrawals from a handful of safer areas of Afghanistan are due to start in July, allowing Afghan forces to take over control of security.
International combat troops are due to complete their pull-out of Afghanistan in 2014 although Western officials stress their countries will have a long-term partnership with Afghanistan beyond that.
- with AFP and AAP