An Australian soldier and Afghan interpreter have been killed in Afghanistan.
Defence Force Chief Angus Houston said that the pair had been shot and, despite immediate first aid, could not be saved.
The incident happened during a patrol in an area to the south-east of patrol base Wali.
The Australian casualty is Sapper Jamie Ronald Larcombe, 21, a South Australian from a Darwin regiment.
Air Chief Marshal Houston said the deaths appear to have resulted from a coordinated insurgent attack employing machine gun and small arms fire.
Twenty-three Australian soldiers have now been killed in Afghanistan.
