US troops killed in Afghan blast

**Four US soldiers have been killed by a roadside bomb in southern Afghanistan, US military sources say.**Two of the servicemen died in the blast, and two others died afterwards of their wounds, reports say.

Further details about the victims and the precise location of the attack have yet to be released.

This year has seen the greatest number of allied casualties in Afghanistan since US-led operations to oust the Taliban regime began in late 2001.