Taliban Stronghold Under Siege in NATO Offensive

CNN: A major operation to rout militants from a notorious southern Afghan Taliban stronghold claimed its first NATO casualties Saturday, but officials said offensive of the war was off to a good start.

Two coalition soldiers died shortly after Operation Moshtarak — an operation by NATO-led and Afghan troops — launched in the early morning hours of Saturday, a NATO spokeswoman said.

A U.S. military official confirmed one U.S. Marine was killed in small arms fire in Operation Moshtarak in Helmand province, and a British soldier was killed in an explosion.