U.S. troop reinforcements head for embattled southern Afghan province

U.S. troops load gear onto an airplane at Camp Bastion in Helmand province October 25, 2014 in this file picture. REUTERS/Omar Sobhani

KABUL (Reuters) - Hundreds more U.S. troops are headed for Afghanistan’s strife-torn Helmand province to shore up security forces who have struggled in the face of sustained Taliban attacks, officials said.

The core of the new force will provide more security and act as advisers to the Afghan army's 215th Corps, U.S. Army spokesman Col. Michael Lawhorn said in a statement.