NATO says 1 service member killed in eastern Afghanistan and another killed in south

NATO says 2 service members killed

KABUL — NATO says one service member has been killed in an insurgent attack in eastern Afghanistan, and that another has died in a roadside bombing attack in the south.

NATO spokesman Col. Wayne Shanks says an American service member died in the attack in the east Friday. The alliance has not indicated the nationality of the service member who died in the bombing in the south on Thursday.

With the deaths, NATO has lost 23 service members in Afghanistan this month.

Violence has been rising in the southern province of Kandahar. NATO and Afghan government forces are gearing up for a major operation in the region to root out Taliban insurgents in the region.

NATO leaders say the operation will be crucial to the outcome of the war.