A roadside bomb killed the mayor of Afghanistan's eastern city of Khost Tuesday, as the government said 30 militants were killed in fighting in the south.
The Interior Ministry said the militants died during a joint operation involving Afghan forces and international troops in Uruzgan province. Afghan officials said the battles began Monday and continued Tuesday.
Meanwhile, in eastern Khost province, Sahki Mirullah, mayor of the provincial capital - also called Khost - was killed when a bomb ripped through his car as he drove home from work.
In another incident in Khost Tuesday, the U.S. military said troops killed an Afghan teenager during a pre-dawn hunt that led to the capture of four suspected militants.
A U.S. spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Rick Helmer, said Afghan and U.S. forces approached a compound in Besmil district and asked the residents to leave peacefully. He said some did but that the teenager would not leave. He then moved suddenly and was fired upon.
The spokesman said the U.S. military is saddened by the incident and is making arrangements to pay for the funeral.
The latest violence came as a conference on stabilizing Afghanistan was held in The Hague on Tuesday. World leaders, including Afghan President Hamid Karzai and Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, attended.
Some information for this report was provided by AFP and AP.
