April 28 (Bloomberg) -- An Australian commando was killed and four others wounded when they were attacked by Taliban militants in southern Afghanistan.

Afghanistan is ``moving into the fighting season'' as the snows melt, Angus Houston, Australia's defense force chief, said today in the capital, Canberra, as he announced the death of Lance Corporal Jason Marks. Fighting will probably intensify in coming weeks and months, he added.

The four wounded soldiers were transported to the hospital after their patrol was hit by ``heavy arms fire'' in Uruzgan province, Houston said. Their injuries aren't life-threatening.

Australia is a partner of NATO's International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan that is battling supporters of the Taliban regime that was ousted by a U.S.-led military coalition in 2001. Australia has 1,000 personnel in Uruzgan province and around Kandahar Airport in the south.

The death was Australia's fifth in combat operations in Afghanistan and Prime Minister Kevin Rudd said today the country's forces face a tough period ahead as the offensive by the Taliban gets under way.

This year ``will be difficult and dangerous and bloody and the Australian nation needs to prepare itself for further losses,'' he told reporters in Canberra. Rudd said the government has no plans to dispatch more troops to Afghanistan.

The death of the commando came as Afghan President Hamid Karzai escaped unharmed when gunmen opened fire at a ceremony he was attending in the capital, Kabul. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and said it showed they can strike ``wherever'' they want, Agence France-Presse reported.

Marks, 27, a father of two and member of the Sydney-based 4th Battalion (Commando), was killed just after 6 p.m. Afghan time yesterday, the Department of Defence said. His unit had been preparing a raid on Taliban forces when it was attacked.

To contact the reporters on this story: Madelene Pearson in Melbourne on mpearson1@bloomberg.net; Michael Heath in Sydney at mheath1@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: April 28, 2008 00:17 EDT