AN Australian soldier has been killed in a battle with Taliban insurgents in Afghanistan. He is the fifth to die since troops were sent there in 2002. Lance-Cpl Jason Marks was on foot with other commandos about 6pm on Sunday, preparing to attack the Taliban, when they walked into an enemy force. The Diggers came under fire from rocket-propelled grenades and AK-47 rifles from several directions. Lance-Cpl Marks, 27, fell soon after. Distraught wife Cassandra said the father of a five-year-old son and five-month-old daughter was a born soldier. "All Jason ever wanted to do was join the army," she said. "He was the type of man who knew what he wanted, even from the age of 12. Becoming a commando was a dream of Jason's."
The Digger was killed by a Taliban round about 25km southeast of the Australian base at Tarin Kowt in Oruzgan province. The commandos had been on patrol for days and had hidden their long-range patrol vehicles and Land Rover to walk to where they were to attack the Taliban when they stumbled on the enemy force. Four soldiers were hurt in the intense firefight. As the battle raged, the company commander radioed for support from Dutch F-16 fighter jets and Apache attack helicopters.
The aircraft helped the company of about 100 troops -- a third of the Special Operations Task Group -- to push the enemy back so medivac helicopters could fly casualties back to a field hospital at Tarin Kowt. It is believed a number of enemy fighters were killed.
Ms Marks said there were no words to express how the devastated family was feeling. "Jason was a devoted father to our two beautiful children and a loving husband to me," she said.
Defence boss Air Chief Marshal Angus Houston described Lance-Cpl Marks as a very fine soldier. He joined the army in 1999 and was a member of the Royal Australian Army Medical Corps before transferring to the Sydney-based 4th Battalion (Commandos) in 2005. He had been in Afghanistan for just a few weeks.