Three women died Thursday in a mortar attack in eastern Afghanistan, while four police officers were killed in the north after insurgents assaulted an outpost, officials said, dpa reported.
The women died when a mortar hit a house in the central province of Maidan Wardak during a gun battle between insurgents and NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) troops, said district governor Mohammad Ismail.
He said three women were also wounded. "It is still unclear who fired the rocket on the civilian house - whether it was the international forces or the Taliban," he said.
ISAF spokesman Major Jason Waggoner said, "We can confirm that there was an engagement between the coalition troops and the insurgents this morning in Chacki district.
"Reports do indicate that civilians were injured and an investigation is underway."
Meanwhile, insurgents attacked a police outpost in northern Badakhshan province late Wednesday, killing four officers.
Two police officers were wounded in the assault on a checkpoint in Warduj district "by Taliban militants," said the provincial police chief, Abdul Saboor Nasrati.
He said 16 police officers have been missing since the attack by a large number of militants, and he feared that they had been kidnapped.
Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said in a statement online that the attack was carried out by their fighters, killing several soldiers. He claimed that 20 soldiers "were captured."