VALDOSTA — A Valdosta State alum was one of six servicemen killed this week in a suicide attack in Afghanistan.

Valdosta State University released a statement noting Air Force Staff Sgt. Chester McBride was killed Monday while on duty in Afghanistan.  McBride graduated in May from VSU with a Master’s Degree in Public Administration.

The attack Monday was the worse against American soldiers this year.

CBS News reported that only a day after the American ambush, U.S. and British soldiers went to the aid of the struggling Afghan army, trying to hold off the Taliban takeover of a crucial southern province.

The Taliban has been gaining strength ever since the end of the U.S. combat mission and ensuing drawdown.

The Taliban released a photograph of the bomber they claimed had attacked the Americans.