U.S. soldier and 2 Afghan troops reportedly killed in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan — The U.S. military said Saturday that a service member has been killed in Afghanistan, while in a separate incident two Afghan soldiers died when their helicopter failed to land properly.

The U.S. military did not provide further details on the soldier's identity or the time or place of death.

The two Afghan soldiers died Saturday when their helicopter made an “emergency landing” in the southern Kandahar province due to a technical problem, Defense Ministry spokesman Ghafor Ahmad Jawad said. He said two other soldiers were wounded. The Taliban claim to have shot the helicopter down.

In the capital, Kabul, a senior religious scholar was shot and killed, said Basir Mujahid, a spokesman for the capital's police chief. No one immediately claimed the killing of Abdul Basir Haqqan.

BERTRAND GUAY/GETTY-AFP A man throws a bike in a burning truck during a protest against rising oil prices and living costs near the Arc de Triomphe on the Champs-Elysees in Paris on Saturday.