KABUL, Aug 18: Three Afghan soldiers were killed in fighting with suspected Taliban militants, following a day of bloodshed which left at least 22 other people dead in southeast Afghanistan, local officials said on Monday.

The soldiers were killed on Sunday night when dozens of militants attacked and burned down the local district office in Turwa, Paktika province, 310 kilometres south of Kabul, the provincial governor Mohammad Ali Jalali said.

“Last night a group of tens of local Taliban attacked Turwa district, killed three government soldiers and burned the district office,” Jalali told AFP.

The governor said it was not known if there were any casualties among the attackers.

“Nobody else was injured or kidnapped,” he said, adding that the incident was being investigated.