Kabul - A NATO soldier was killed Wednesday in an attack in the southern region of Afghanistan, where a roadside bomb explosion wounded six civilians, officials said.

The soldier, whose nationality was not revealed by the alliance, was killed in a "hostile incident" in the southern region, the International Security Assistance Force said in a statement.

Kabul  - Polish President Lech Kaczynski Wednesday announced plans to send hundreds of extra troops to war-torn Afghanistan in the coming months, following a meeting with his Afghan counterpart President Hamid Karzai in Kabul.

Kaczynski arrived in Afghanistan on a one-day trip to talk with Afghan government officials and visit his Polish troops stationed in volatile southern province of Ghazni. About 1,600 Polish soldiers are stationed in Afghanistan.

Kabul, Apr. 8 : The US has held direct talks with one of Afghanistan''s biggest insurgent factions it has been reported.

Kabul  - Two NATO-led soldiers were killed in separate attacks in southern Afghanistan, while eight Taliban militants were killed by Afghan and US-led coalition forces elsewhere in the country, officials said Tuesday.

In the latest attack, a NATO soldier was killed and three were wounded in a roadside bomb attack in the southern region on Tuesday, the alliance said in a statement.

Termez, Uzbekistan  - German Chancellor Angela Merkel left Afghanistan Tuesday, after bad weather forced her to cut short a surprise visit to German troops in the region.

The chancellor, who had to cancel a planned excursion to the German military base in Feyzabad due to bad flying conditions, departed Tuesday morning from the Termez military base in neighbouring Uzbekistan.

Merkel's two-day visit came shortly after NATO set a new strategy for Afghanistan, placing a greater emphasis on reconstruction, alongside its military fight against the Taliban.

Termez, Uzbekistan  - German Chancellor Angela Merkel left Afghanistan Tuesday, after bad weather forced her to cut short a surprise visit to German troops in the region.

The chancellor, who had to cancel a planned excursion to the German military base in Feyzabad due to bad flying conditions, departed Tuesday morning from the Termez military base in neighbouring Uzbekistan.

Merkel's two-day visit came shortly after NATO set a new strategy for Afghanistan, placing a greater emphasis on reconstruction, alongside its military fight against the Taliban.