Afghan soldiers die in suspected Taliban ambush

SUSPECTED Taliban fighters attacked a government checkpoint and ambushed another group of Afghan soldiers along the main road linking the south with the capital, killing at least eight soldiers, Afghan officials said yesterday.

The attacks came a day after two US soldiers were killed in a 90-minute gunbattle with insurgents in eastern Paktika province, near the border with Pakistan. Four suspected Taliban were killed in that fighting.

Guerrillas from the former radical Taliban regime recently have appeared to regroup, launching bolder attacks against Afghan government targets. Four American soldiers have been killed during fighting in less than two weeks.