The deaths of two American soldiers in an attack Saturday on an army checkpoint in eastern Afghanistan brings the total number of U.S. troops killed in the almost 11-year-old war to 2,000.

The “green on blue” attack is the latest in a series of assaults by uniformed Afghan soldiers, police officers or militants that have killed more than 50 foreign troops and the same number of Afghan cops and soldiers this year.

— Posted by Alexander Reed Kelly.

The Guardian:

Saturday’s shooting took place at an Afghan army checkpoint just outside a joint US-Afghan base in Wardak province, said Shahidullah Shahid, a provincial government spokesman. At least two Afghan soldiers also died, he said.

“Initial reports indicate that a misunderstanding happened between Afghan army soldiers and American soldiers,” Shahid said.

He said investigators had been sent to the site. It was not clear if the assailant was killed.

Read more