3 Soldiers Slain in Afghanistan

A U.S. special operations soldier and at least two Afghan servicemen were killed in separate attacks in Afghanistan, officials said Thursday.

“One special operations member was killed and two wounded during operations in the vicinity of Gardez, in Paktia province, last night,” the U.S. Central Command said in a brief statement that gave no further information.

Police said earlier that at least two Afghan soldiers were killed and one wounded when their vehicle was ambushed Wednesday night by suspected Taliban militants not far from a U.S. base near the town of Spin Buldak, on the Pakistani border southeast of the city of Kandahar.

“The Taliban used rockets and heavy machine guns and killed two Afghan soldiers on the spot,” a senior town official said. “The Taliban are again regrouping in eastern and southern Afghanistan.”

Remnants of the deposed Taliban regime reportedly created a 10-member war council under leader Mullah Mohammed Omar this week to organize resistance against foreign troops.

On Wednesday, Afghan President Hamid Karzai dismissed the formation of the council as meaningless. He said the Taliban posed no threat to the government even though it still has the ability to carry out limited attacks.