Violence has claimed 19 lives in southern Afghanistan as the US secretary of defense visits the country.
A roadside bomb killed three policemen and a civilian in Spin Bolkdek in Kandahar province.
Elsewhere in the province, 15 people were slaughtered in a NATO airstrike in Mian-shin town.
NATO officials claimed the raid targeted Taliban militants.
Meanwhile, US Secretary of Defense Robert Gates has made a quick visit to Kandahar under heavy security measures aiming to show progress in the war against the militants in southern Afghanistan, according to the Associated Press.
Gates' unannounced and brief tour of Afghanistan is reportedly aimed to review the latest developments there. He has warned of tough battles against the Taliban in the months to come.
Thousands of Afghan civilians have been killed since the 2001 US-led invasion of Afghanistan.
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