Five people were killed and 13 wounded today when Taliban fighters ambushed a convoy of Afghan government military vehicles in the restive southern province of Kandahar, an official said.
"Three Taliban were killed and four of them were wounded in the clash that lasted for 50 minutes," said Mr Khali Pashtuna, a spokesman for the provincial governor. "Two from government side died and nine others were injured."
He said some 40 Taliban fighters had attacked the vehicles carrying 13 soldiers near Khakraiz district.
About 70 people have been killed and wounded in the past two weeks in the region, once a stronghold of the country's former Taliban rulers who were overthrown by US-led forces in late 2001.
Afghanistan has been rocked by fresh wave of violence since August and more than 450 people have been killed and scores wounded, mostly in the southern and eastern areas.
Militants, civilians, aid workers, Afghan troops and over a dozen foreign soldiers have been among those killed.
A US-led combat operation of some 12,000 troops is in Afghanistan hunting Taliban remnants, their al Qaeda allies, and militants loyal to Gulbuddin Hekmatyar who has declared a holy war against foreign troops there.
Pashtun said the increase in violence in the south was part of militant campaign to mar the war-torn country's first ever general elections scheduled for June.
US-backed President Hamid Karzai said his government and the international community would do their utmost to ensure Afghans can freely vote.