A Danish trooper has reportedly died in the southern Afghan province of Helmand, after being fired at by unidentified attackers.

The incident took place on Friday as the soldier was "on foot patrol with his unit," read a statement by the Danish military, the AFP news agency reported.

Denmark has assigned more than 700 troops to the US-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF), which commands 100,000-plus forces.

The death brings to 26 the number of the Danish soldiers who have died since the 2001 US-led invasion of the war-torn country.

Last Friday, Danish soldiers killed an Afghan child and injured two civilians in the south when allegedly returning insurgent fire.

Many thousands of Afghan civilians have died over the eight-year-old war due to operations gone wrong or widely-reported instances of violence against the non-combatants.

HN/MMN