KABUL, Jan. 8 (Xinhua) -- A soldier with the NATO-led coalition forces has been killed when a man in Afghan army uniform opened fire at coalition forces, the coalition forces said in a statement issued here on Tuesday. "An individual wearing an Afghan National Army uniform turned his weapon against International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service members in southern Afghanistan on Monday, killing one," the coalition or ISAF said in the statement.
The brief statement did not provide details whether the shooter was killed or captured in the incident, only saying "The incident is currently under investigation,"
If the shooter confirmed to be a member of Afghan army, the attack will be the first incident of the so-called"green-on-blue" insider attack this year in which Afghan army, police or gunmen in their uniform open fire at their international partners.
A total of 405 foreign soldiers were killed in Afghanistan last year and out of the total casualties in 2012, up to 58 coalition soldiers were killed in the green-on-blue insider attacks.
The Taliban insurgents, who have been waging an insurgency of more than one decade, have regularly claimed responsibilities for the green on blue attacks, saying their men have infiltrated into the ranks of Afghan army and police to kill foreign soldiers.
However, the coalition military officials have recently said that about 25 percent of the insider attacks are in some manner related to the Taliban-led insurgency.
They said the factors that contribute to the so-called green on blue shootings are wide-ranging from infiltration and impersonation to personal grievances.
However, it is said that the cultural differences between Afghan security forces and their western partners could also be a reason for the attacks.
The statement did not disclose the nationality of the victim under the ISAF policy.
A total of 50 countries are contributing 100,000-strong forces in Afghanistan with over 68,000 of them American mainly stationed in the east and south, followed by 9,500 from UK mainly based in southern Afghanistan.
Special Report: Afghanistan Situation
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