US troops shot four Afghan policemen dead and wounded another after mistaking them for militants during an operation in southern Afghanistan, a senior local official said on Tuesday.

Separately, on Tuesday three Afghans working for the American security firm USPI were hurt — and one was possibly killed — by a roadside bomb in Kandahar, provincial governor, Assadullah Khalid said.

He said there were no foreigners on board the vehicle, but had no further details about the attack outside Kandahar city.

The US military in Kabul said it had no information about the killing of policemen.

PHOTO CAPTION

US soldiers disembark from an army helicopter on their way to the southern Afghan city of Kandahar, August 23, 2005. (AFP)