Battle kills more than 40 rebels

Afghan and NATO forces killed more than 40 insurgents in an air and ground battle in southern Afghanistan, a security official said, and a roadside bomb killed two soldiers from the U.S.-led coalition in a separate incident.

Troops seized dozens of weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns, after Saturday’s battle in Oruzgan province, the Afghan Defense Ministry said in a statement. An official at the ministry put the number of dead at more than 40.

Meanwhile, U.S.-led coalition troops hit a roadside bomb in Kandahar province as they were conducting a security patrol with Afghan troops, the coalition said in a statement. It did not release the nationalities of the two soldiers killed.