12 Jul 2012

NZ soldiers help evacuate injured Afghan police

10:27 pm on 12 July 2012

New Zealand soldiers in Afghanistan have helped evacuate injured local police officers after five were killed in a roadside bomb attack in Bamiyan Province.

A two-vehicle convoy of Afghan National Police hit an improvised explosive device in the Shikari Valley in the north of Bamiyan on Sunday night.

The New Zealanders secured the area and assisted the wounded officers, who were helicoptered to the United States military base of Bagram, near the capital Kabul.

In various rotations of about 140 personnel, New Zealand defence, police and civilian staff have been serving in the Bamiyan Provincial Reconstruction Team since 2003, initially responsible for security.

But Afghan forces have now taken the lead role on security issues, with the New Zealanders in support.