Missing U.S. sailor's body found in Afghanistan

The body of a U.S. sailor who went missing in Afghanistan on Friday has been found, NATO has confirmed.

A Colorado politician said the dead soldier was his nephew, 30-year-old Justin McNeley. Representative Jim Kerr of Littleton, Colo., told the Denver Post newspaper that McNeley wasa non-commissioned officer and father of two boys, and was due to return home in August.

The two navy personnel went missing Friday in the eastern province of Logar, after an armoured Land Rover sport utility vehicle was seen driving into a Taliban-held area. NATO officials were unable to say what they were doing in such a dangerous part of eastern Afghanistan.

The search continues for the other missing sailor, said Lt.-Col. Todd Breasseale, a spokesman for NATO and U.S. forces in Afghanistan.

The Taliban had said previously that they killed one of the two men in a firefight and captured the other, who was put in a "safe place" wherehe wouldnot be found.

In a statement, the NATO-led command said the body was recovered Sunday after an extensive search and that the coalition "holds the captors accountable for the safety and proper treatment of our missing service member."

NATO has distributed hundreds of fliers, with reprinted photos of the two sailors, throughout Logar province, and has offered a $20,000 US reward for information leading to the surviving sailor's location.

NATO troops are also stopping vehicles there, searching them and those inside.