Spanish soldier killed in roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan

MADRID, Feb. 1 (Xinhua) -- The Spanish Defense Ministry confirmed Monday that a Spanish soldier has been killed and six others injured in northwestern Afghanistan when their armored vehicle hit a mine.

The Spanish soldiers, together with Afghan police, were escorting a convoy of the World Food Program when their vehicle struck the mine north of Qala I Naw, 550 kilometers west of Kabul.

The killed was identified as John Romero Menesesm, a 21-year-old Colombian national who served in the Spanish army.

After the blast, the Spanish troops exchanged fire with Taliban militants hiding nearby, killing three Taliban guerrillas.

The six injured Spanish soldiers, two of them in serious condition, were transported by helicopter to a hospital in the nearby city of Herat.

The Spanish Defense Ministry said the six injured might be brought back home, depending on their health conditions.

Spanish Defense Minister Carmen Chacon will visit Afghanistan to show his sympathy with the wounded and oversee arrangements for bringing home Meneses' body.

Spain has deployed 1,068 troops in Afghanistan as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force. Since 2002, 92 Spanish soldiers have died in the war-ravaged country.