British Afghanistan death toll reaches 204

KABUL, Afghanistan, Aug. 17 (UPI) -- The number of British troops killed in Afghanistan has risen to 204, the Defense Ministry said.

Three soldiers with the 2nd Battalion of the Royal Regiment of Fusiliers died Sunday in an explosion in Sangin in the violence-hit southern Helmand Province, Britain's Daily Telegraph reported, quoting the ministry.

Helmand is the focus of an expanded campaign by U.S. and British troops to wrest control of the region from the Taliban.

Violence has escalated as Thursday's presidential elections draw near, and the militant group has asked Afghans to boycott the polls.