Afghan Roadside Bomb Strikes U.S. Military Vehicle

KABUL, Afghanistan — A roadside blast hit an American military vehicle in southern Afghanistan yesterday, causing minor injuries, the military said.

The roadside bomb struck a vehicle in the southern Kandahar province, an American military spokesman, Lieutenant Colonel Paul Fanning, said. There were no deaths, but a "couple of soldiers" were lightly wounded, he said.

Meanwhile, clashes and airstrikes in the south killed 11 Taliban militants, Afghanistan's Defense Ministry said yesterday.

Afghan and foreign troops clashed with Taliban fighters and called in airstrikes Sunday in Garmser district of the Helmand province, leaving seven militants dead, the ministry said.

Four other militants were killed Sunday after they ambushed an Afghan army patrol in Kandahar province, the ministry said in a statement.

More than 1,000 people, mostly militants, have died in insurgency-related violence this year, according to an Associated Press count based on numbers provided by Afghan and Western officials.