Three British soldiers have been killed in a roadside bomb attack in Afghanistan.
Four US soldiers were also killed in a separate attack in the past 24 hours.
The three British soldiers, from the Parachute Regiment, were killed in Helmand when their vehicle was struck by a roadside bomb and ambushed with gunfire yesterday.
The US military said the four US soldiers were killed when their vehicle struck a homemade bomb.
Initially a US military spokesman said that incident also took place in Helmand, but a spokeswoman later said it took place in an area to the west.
Violence across Afghanistan has hit its worst level since the Taliban were ousted in 2001 and has intensified since thousands of newly arrived US Marines launched Operation Strike of the Sword to seize Taliban-held areas in Helmand.
Britain also launched a large, simultaneous offensive in another part of Helmand, Operation Panther's Claw, facing heavy losses as troops seize territory north of the provincial capital Lashkar Gah.
Last month, the British death toll in Afghanistan overtook its toll in Iraq.
