Nato soldier killed in southern Afghanistan

An explosion hit a Nato patrol in southern Afghanistan today, killing one soldier and wounding another, the alliance said.

The troops were patrolling in Ghazni province, Nato's International Security Assistance Force said in a statement. No details were given about the explosion or the troops' nationalities.

In the western province of Herat, Taliban militants attacked a checkpoint yesterday in Shindand district, killing two police officers and wounding another, said Rauf Ahmadi, spokesman for the western region police.

Most Afghan police are poorly trained and equipped, leaving them vulnerable. Taliban insurgents killed seven police yesterday in southern Kandahar province as they were eradicating a field of opium poppies.

Authorities say that more than 900 police were killed in insurgent attacks last year. Overall, the UN says that more than 8,000 people, mostly militants, were killed in 2007.