Four British soldiers killed in Afghanistan

LONDON (Reuters) - Four British soldiers have been killed in a roadside explosion in southern Afghanistan, taking the death toll since 2001 to 106, the Ministry of Defence said on Wednesday.

It said one of the four was believed to be a woman, the first British female soldier to have been killed in action in Afghanistan.

"I would like to express my deepest condolences to the families of the four brave British soldiers who have lost their lives in Afghanistan and will be deeply mourned," Prime Minister Gordon Brown said in a statement.

"They were in the most dangerous of jobs in the most difficult of circumstances."

The four, one Intelligence Corps soldier and three other soldiers, were killed on Tuesday afternoon when their vehicle was hit by an explosion.

The soldiers were taking part in an operation east of Lashkar Gah in Helmand province, the MoD said.

A fifth soldier who was also caught in the blast is receiving treatment for his wounds but is in a stable condition, it added.

The deaths follow those of five members of the Parachute Regiment in two separate incidents last week.

(Reporting by Jeremy Lovell; editing by Stephen Weeks)