Three British soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb attack in southern Helmand province, the UK Defence Ministry said.
The three soldiers from The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion the Royal Regiment of Scotland, were killed when their vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device whilst on a routine patrol in Nahr-e-Saraj district of Helmand Tuesday, the Ministry of Defence said.
They received immediate medical attention and were evacuated by air to the Military Hospital at Camp Bastion but could not be saved, the ministry said.
"Our thoughts are with the families who have lost loved ones in this incident, which underlines the threats faced by our personnel as they continue to hand over security operations to their Afghan counterparts ahead of UK combat operations concluding by the end of next year," a ministry's spokesman said.
Meanwhile, a spokesman for Task Force Helmand Major Richard Morgan has also confirmed the attack.
"It is with deep sadness that I must confirm that 3 soldiers from The Royal Highland Fusiliers, 2nd Battalion The Royal Regiment of Scotland, have died after their vehicle was struck by an improvised explosive device in the Nahr-e Saraj district of Helmand province. Their deaths come as a great loss to all those serving in Task Force Helmand," he said.
The death brings the number of British soldiers killed in the Afghan war this year to three and the total killed since 2001 to 444.
Britain has had around 9,500 troops in Afghanistan since 2001 with most of them based in southern Helmand province.