Janan Mohammed Khan, the governor of Uruzgan province, said the fighting came during a raid on a suspected Taliban hideout late on Monday.

An unidentified U.S. military spokeswoman said she had no details about the incident.

There has been an upsurge in violence ahead of Afghanistan's September parliamentary elections.

In fighting on Monday, militants attacked a U.S.-Afghan patrol in southern Uruzgan, setting off a gunbattle that killed one U.S. and one Afghan soldier, as well as 11 militants.