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London: An investigation was launched on Friday after a British helicopter accidentally fired on UK paratroops in Afghanistan, wounding nine.
Three of the soldiers were seriously hurt in the "friendly fire" incident, which came when the helicopter fired on what it mistakenly thought was a Taliban position. It is believed to have been the first known case of so-called "friendly fire" by UK air support in Afghanistan.
Six of the injured have returned to duty, the Ministry of Defence said. Two of the injured were stable and under observation, and one soldier was on the way back to Britain.
Fast-changing situation
Soldiers from 2 Para were on a routine patrol near the British forward operating base in Helmand province on Wednesday when they encountered Taliban fighters. The paratroops called in support from a British Apache helicopter, which successfully fired on a Taliban position, but, in a mistaken manoeuvre, targeted a 2 Para position.
A statement from the MoD said: "In the confusion of a rapidly changing situation and in what is a challenging environment, it would appear that friendly forces were mistaken for the enemy and as a result three members of the patrol were seriously wounded and six more were classified as walking wounded.
The statement added: "An investigation is under way into how the incident occurred and it would be inappropriate to comment until that is complete."
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