The Afghanistan National Army (ANA) has killed six suspected militants and arrested eight others, a press release of the Defense Ministry said Sunday.

"Five of the enemies were killed in Pashmol village of Jalai district in the southern Kandahar province while one rebel was killed in Daulat Shahi district of Laghman province on Saturday," the press release said.

Eight militants including a group commander Mullah Nazar were arrested during the operations, it added.

"A number of Pakistani and Iranian travel checks worth 300,000 U.S. dollars were recovered from the possession of Mullah Nazar," it said.

A quantity of arms and ammunition including explosive devices from the militants were also seized.

Two ANA soldiers were killed in the incidents, the release said.

An explosion killed one Spanish soldier and wounded four others in the western Farah province on Saturday, and six British soldiers have been killed in the volatile southern Helmand province over the past month.

Taliban-linked insurgency has been on a rise in this post-Taliban central Asian state particularly in the southern region.

More than 1,000 people, mostly Taliban-linked militants, have been killed since January.

Source: Xinhua