Ambush on US-led Afghan convoy kills 3 policemen

KABUL, July 11 (Reuters) Taliban guerrillas killed three policemen in an ambush on a convoy of US-led troops in Afghanistan today, a provincial official said.

A civilian passer-by was also killed, the official said, but there was no immediate word of any casualties among the troops.

The attack happened on a road in the southeastern province of Paktia, a bastion for the resurgent Taliban, who have stepped up their raids in recent months. Last year saw the bloodiest violence since the militants' ousting by US-led forces in 2001.

US and NATO troops operate in the region, but neither had any immediate information about the attack.

Violence has surged in Afghanistan in the past 18 months and has killed more than 6,000 people.

Reuters RSA GC1325