2 U.S. troops killed in Afghanistan attack

KABUL -- A man in an Afghan police uniform shot and killed two American service members Thursday in what may be the latest in a rash of attacks on international forces this year by their Afghan partners.

The so-called insider attacks have stretched to the breaking point a partnership that U.S. and NATO officials consider a key part their exit plan -- preparing the Afghans to take over responsibility for their country's security. They have also cast major doubts over the program, which is supposed to pave the way for the majority of international combat troops to leave Afghanistan by the end of 2014.

In yesterday's shooting, authorities had yet to determine if the attacker was an Afghan police officer or an insurgent who had donned a uniform to get close to the Americans, said Maj. Lori Hodge, a spokeswoman for U.S. forces in Afghanistan. The assailant escaped after killing the service members while they were out on a late-morning patrol in the southern Uruzgan province, she added.

It was the second suspected insider attack in two days. On Wednesday, two British service members and an Afghan police officer were killed in an "exchange of gunfire" in Helmand province, the British Ministry of Defense said. The Afghan officer was not wearing his uniform and the statement said it was unclear who started shooting first.

Before Thursday's shooting, insider attacks from Afghan soldiers or police so far this year had killed 53 members of the NATO military coalition.

The Taliban have said they are using the attacks as a specific strategy to drive a wedge between the international coalition and the Afghans. On Wednesday, they called for more such assaults.