'Taliban Kill 10 French Paratroopers, Raid US Base', The Associated Press, 19 August 2008
EXCERPT: "About 100 insurgents ambushed a group of French paratroopers as they climbed a mountain pass, killing 10 soldiers in a militant stronghold outside the capital. In a separate coordinated attack Tuesday [19 August 2008], a team of suicide bombers tried unsuccessfully to storm a U.S. base near the Afghanistan-Pakistan border. The death of the French soldiers marked the biggest single combat loss for international forces in Afghanistan in more than three years. The soldiers were on a reconnaissance mission in the Surobi district, about 30 miles east of the Afghan capital, when they were ambushed Monday afternoon. NATO sent backup and said a "large number" of the attackers were killed in the three-hour gunbattle. France's top military official, Gen. Jean-Louis Georgelin, said most of the French casualties came in the minutes after the team was climbing a mountain pass. The fighting lasted into nightfall, he said."
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See also:
'Attacks on French signal Taliban strength: Analysts', Canada.com, 19 August 2008
'Sarkozy visits French soldiers following brutal Taliban ambush', Deutsche Welle, 19 August 2008
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'France to deploy troops to Afghanistan', 4 June 2008
'The Afghanistan question', 2 May 2008
'Sarkozy vows no talks with Taliban, Hamas, Iran', 25 April 2008
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