Another British soldier was killed and several others were seriously injured in fierce clashes with the Taleban in southern Afghanistan today.

The elite soldiers were part of an operation to storm an insurgent base in Helmand, when they were attacked by dozens of fighters from a series of dug-in positions.

A spokesman for the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force, which commands British forces in Afghanistan, said: "ISAF soldiers were involved in a pre-planned operation against an insurgent base, when they were engaged from several insurgent positions.

"Close air support was requested and targeted the insurgents."

The injured soldiers were evacuated by helicopter to military hospitals, but the MoD last night refused to release details of their condition. It is understood one of the men was "critical".

The soldier’s death comes less than 48 hours after two British soldiers were killed in separate incidents in Iraq and Afghanistan and cements a bloody start to 2007, which military analysts hoped would be quieter in terms of casualties. The Taleban normally regroup in the winter, but British soldiers have adopted a policy of "taking the fight to them".

The attack began before dawn yesterday and lasted through the morning, as Apache helicopter gunships and fighter jets bombarded the Taleban positions. Allied bombers also dropped several 2000lb bombs on the compounds, as the soldiers battled their way to safety.

Two other ISAF soldiers, said by Afghan police to be Canadians, were wounded in a separate incident Monday when a patrol vehicle struck a remote-controlled roadside bomb in Kandahar province. And in the capital, Kabul, a rocket exploded near a secure UN compound.

Around 100 people were asleep in the building at the time. The rocket exploded mid-air, spreading debris around the compound but causing no injuries, UK spokesman Aleem Siddique said.

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