Kabul - Two Afghan army soldiers were killed in a roadside bomb blast in southern Afghanistan Saturday, while 20 suspected Taliban were killed in an overnight clash in eastern region, officials said.

The two army soldiers were killed in southern Zabul province on Saturday morning when their vehicle was blown up by a roadside bomb during a military patrol, defence ministry said in a statement.

Another soldier was wounded in the blast, and was in stable condition in the provincial hospital, it said.

Meanwhile, Aziz Ahmad Wardak, the provincial police chief for south-eastern province of Paktia claimed that their forces backed by NATO air support killed 20 Taliban militants in Ahmadkhail district of the province on early Saturday.

The clash erupted after the militants attacked a police post in the district, wounding four police forces, he said, adding that the police forces fought back and called in NATO aircraft to target the militants.

Nine bodies of the militants were still on the battlefield, while the police forces arrested a militant, who was wounded during the clash.

Taliban militants, who ruled Afghanistan for five years before being ousted in a US-led invasion in late 2001, have vowed to increase their attacks on Afghan and international military forces in summer and spring, the two traditional fighting seasons in the country.

Currently around 70,000 international troops deployed from 42 nations are stationed in Afghanistan. More than 20,000 US soldiers are expected to arrive in the country in the coming months to contain insurgency this year. (dpa)