At least eight suspected Taliban militants were killed Friday in a clash between militants and security forces in eastern Afghan province of Laghman, an army commander said.

"The clash broke out in wee hours Friday morning when Afghan army personnel came in contact with suspected Taliban militants in Surkhakan area of Qarghayi district in Laghman province but during the shootout eight militants were killed," an army commander with Sayllab Corps, Colonel Shah Alam, told Xinhua.

The army forces also seized six machineguns besides discovering several Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs) at the scene, Colonel Alam said, adding "the militants intended to plant the IEDs along a main highway to target security forces but their vicious plan has been foiled,"

In a separate development, a civilian was killed and six other civilians injured when a bicycle bomb went off in neighbouring Khost province Friday morning, a provincial police sources said.

"A bomb planted in bicycle was detonated through a remote control in Faiz Mohammad neighbourhood of provincial capital Khost city leaving one civilians dead and injuring six others including a women," deputy provincial police chief Mohammad Yaqub told Xinhua.

He said the injured were shifted by police to a hospital in Khost city but the injuries were not life-threatening.

Taliban militants have often attacked Afghan and NATO-led forces with IEDs and roadside bombs but the lethal weapons also inflict casualties on civilians.

Taliban militants, who stepped up their attacks on Afghan and NATO-led troops since a rebel offensive was launched in May 2011 in the war-ravaged country, have yet to make comments.

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