Ottawa  - Two roadside bombs killed four Canadian soldiers and one Afghan interpreter, the Ministry of National Defence said.

Eight soldiers were injured in the blasts that occurred in Afghanistan's Kandahar province on Friday, the ministry said.

The first happened early Friday in the vicinity of a dismounted patrol in Zhari District, west of Kandahar city, killing two soldiers and a local interpreter and injuring five people.

The second explosion occurred about two hours later when the troop's vehicle "struck an improvised explosive device in Shah Wali Khot district, north-east of Kandahar city," the statement said. Two soldiers were killed and three injured.

Canadian news reports said the soldiers were taking part in a US-Canadian offensive in the province aimed against Taliban insurgents.

The explosions bring Canada's death toll in Afghanistan to 116 since the start of its mission as part of the international ISAF force. The country has 2,800 troops deployed in Afghanistan. (dpa)