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OTTAWA, Jan 15 (Reuters) - A Canadian soldier was killed in Afghanistan on Tuesday when the armored reconnaissance vehicle he was traveling in ran over a mine, the army said.

The soldier -- 26-year-old Trooper Richard Renaud -- was the 77th member of Canada's armed forces to die since Ottawa sent troops to Afghanistan in 2002.

Another soldier was injured in the incident, which occurred early in the morning at a point 10 km (6 miles) north of the city of Kandahar.

Canada has 2,500 troops based in Kandahar in southern Afghanistan, on a combat mission that is due to end in February 2009. The minority Conservative government, which wants the soldiers to stay longer, has asked an independent panel to into at how the mission could be extended. (Reporting by David Ljunggren; editing by Rob Wilson)

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