The clash occurred near the Pakistani border in Paktika Province.
Separately in western Farah Province, suspected Taliban insurgents attacked a group of engineers surveying a dam, triggering a clash in which three militants were killed on March 24.
In the southern province of Helmand on March 24, the Defense Ministry says 11 Taliban were killed during a solely Afghan military operation.
Meanwhile, British Attorney General Lord Goldsmith announced today Britain will give $18 million toward Afghanistan's efforts to put drugs traffickers behind bars.
Goldsmith toured a compound of Afghanistan's criminal justice task force where he met officials involved in prosecuting drug traffickers.
(compiled from agency reports)
The Afghan Insurgency
HOMEGROWN OR IMPORTED? As attacks against Afghan and international forces continue relentlessly, RFE/RL hosted a briefing to discuss the nature of the Afghan insurgency. The discussion featured Marvin Weinbaum, professor emeritus of political science at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, and RFE/RL Afghanistan analyst Amin Tarzi.
LISTEN
Listen to the entire briefing (about 83 minutes):