Afghan police killed in attacks

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Nine policemen have been killed in separate attacks by suspected Taleban militants in Afghanistan.

Eight of them died when their police post was stormed by gunmen in Maywand in Kandahar province.

In Helmand province, a suicide bomber killed one policeman and injured several as he tried to enter the house of a senior police official.

Meanwhile, the Dutch military says two of its soldiers were killed as they came under fire near their base.

The clash took place near Deh Rawod in the central province of Uruzgan.

Around 1,650 Dutch troops are in Afghanistan as part of a Nato-led force.

A 20-year-old soldier and a 22-year-old corporal died in what the Dutch called "a sizeable fire-fight".

'Big loss'

In the attack in Kandahar, a checkpoint on a key road came under attack from suspected Taleban gunmen.

"Eight policemen were martyred. This was a big loss," police official Sadullah Khan told AFP.

He said the rebels had captured weapons and two vehicles before making off.

In Lashkar Gah, the capital of the southern Helmand province, a bomber tried to enter the house of a top policeman, as he received pilgrims on their return from Mecca, an official said.

An interior ministry spokesman, Zemarai Bashary, said the attacker detonated his bomb "in the arms of our brave policeman who grabbed him before he could reach his target".

One policeman died, while four policemen and two children were wounded, an official said.

Meanwhile, six rebels were killed on Saturday by Afghan troops in two separate clashes in Kandahar, the defence ministry and the governor of Kandahar said.