Attacks on police checkpoints in northern Afghanistan killed two police officers, and a clash between the Afghan army and Taliban militants in the south killed six militants, officials said Saturday. Afghan soldiers killed the six militant fighters _ including two Taliban commanders _ during an operation in Wardak province on Friday, the Defense Ministry said. In the north, a group of 10 militants attacked a police checkpoint near Kunduz city, killing one policeman, while militants fired rockets at another checkpoint, killing a second policeman and wounding two, said Gen. Noor Afgha Omerkhail, the deputy provincial police chief. The latest violence comes a day after officials said that 75 militants had been killed in operations by the U.S.-led coalition in southern Afghanistan in the last several days. Afghanistan has seen a record level of violence this year. More than 4,400 people _ mostly militants _ have died in insurgency-related violence, according to an Associated Press count based on figures from Afghan and Western officials.
