LONDON: An Afghan policeman has shot dead five British soldiers at a checkpoint in southern Afghanistan, the defence ministry in London said yesterday.

The gunman opened fire at a military compound in Helmand province on Tuesday, a day after Afghan election officials canceled a presidential runoff and gave President Hamid Karzai a second term in office.

British soldiers returned fire, but the policeman escaped and is still at large, a defense ministry spokesperson said. An investigation is under way.