British Reinforcements to Afghanistan

In another sign that the fighting in Afghanistan is heating up, British commanders in southern Afghanistan have requested and are being sent hundreds of additional soldiers:

The reinforcements, to be deployed between now and October, come after military commanders asked last week for more backup. Six British soldiers have died fighting Taliban guerrillas in the south of the country in the past four weeks.

British troops are spearheading a major expansion of NATO peacekeepers into volatile areas in the south of the country, areas which have seen some of the worst fighting since U.S.-backed forces toppled the Taliban in 2001.