Afghan police officer kills 3 U.S. Marines

KABUL -- An Afghan police officer shot and killed three U.S. Marines after sharing a meal with them before dawn Friday and then fled into the desolate darkness of southern Afghanistan, the third attack on coalition forces by their Afghan counterparts in a week.

Thirty-one coalition service members have now died this year at the hands of Afghan forces or insurgents disguised in Afghan uniforms, according to NATO -- a dramatic rise from previous years.

The assaults have cast a shadow of fear and mistrust over U.S. efforts to train Afghan soldiers and police more than 10 years after the U.S.-led invasion to topple the Taliban's hard-line Islamist regime for sheltering al-Qaida's leadership.

Friday's shooting occurred in the volatile Sangin district of Helmand province, said U.S. military spokeswoman Maj. Lori Hodge. Sangin was a Taliban stronghold for years.

A U.S. Defense Department official confirmed that the dead Americans were Marine Special Operations Forces. He spoke on condition of anonymity because the family notification process was not complete.

Sangin's district chief and the Taliban both identified the gunman as Asadullah, a member of the Afghan National Police who was helping the Marines train the Afghan Local Police.

Taliban spokesman Qari Yousef Ahmadi said by phone that the attacker joined the insurgency after the shooting.

The district chief, Mohammad Sharif, said the shooting happened at a police checkpoint after a joint meal and a security meeting.