Taliban militants attacked Afghan security posts in the western province of Herat on Thursday, killing nine soldiers and one police officer, a district governor said on Friday.

The attack occurred in Herat's Shindand district, said the district's governor, Shukrullah Shaker. Four people were wounded, he said.

The Taliban, seeking to restore strict Islamic rule after their 2001 defeat by US-led troops, did not immediately comment.

The attack happened just days after a blast in Shindand killed at least six people, including four children.

Earlier on Thursday, Taliban militants stormed a district in Ghazni province, killing more than a dozen people including the district's governor before retreating.

Fighting in Afghanistan traditionally increases in the spring when warmer weather melts snow blocking mountain passes, increasing the mobility of the insurgents.

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