Sydney - Nine Australian soldiers were injured in a clash with Taliban fighters in the southern Afghan province of Oruzgan, an Australian Defence Force spokesman said Wednesday.

One Special Air Services soldier had life-threatening injuries, said the spokesman, who would not say when the clash took place.

About 1,000 Australian soldiers are deployed in Oruzgan as part of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force and part of the 70,000 foreign soldiers serving in the country.

Six Australian soldiers have been killed since the Islamic fundamentalist regime was ousted in a US-led invasion in late 2001. Militants have proved difficult to dislodge in the restive south since then. (dpa)