FACTBOX - Eight British soldiers killed in Afghanistan

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain said on Friday it had lost eight soldiers in Afghanistan in the space of 24 hours, bringing this month's death toll to 15 in 10 days.

The deaths, announced by the Ministry of Defence, included five who were killed in two blasts while on foot patrol, the highest death toll in a single attack.

Britain has now lost 184 soldiers in Afghanistan since it joined the U.S.-led invasion in 2001, more than the 179 fatalities during its campaign in Iraq that began in 2003.

The Ministry of Defence gave the following details of the latest fatalities, all in the southern province of Helmand:

-- Five soldiers from the 2nd Battalion The Rifles, who were killed by two blasts while on foot patrol near Sangin on Friday.

-- A soldier from the 2nd Royal Tank Regiment who was killed by an explosion during an operation near Nad Ali on Friday.

-- A soldier from the 4th Battalion The Rifles who died in an explosion while on foot patrol near Nad Ali on Thursday.

-- A soldier from the Princess of Wales's Royal Regiment attached to the 1st Battalion Welsh Guards who was killed by a gunshot wound on Thursday.

All next of kin have been informed.

(Reporting by Tim Castle)