KABUL, April 3 (Xinhua) -- One Afghan policeman and two Taliban militants were killed as they exchanged fire in Afghanistan's southern Kandahar province, provincial police chief Asmatullah Alizai said Tuesday.

    The clash occurred in Shah Walikot district on Monday night when the rebels opened fire on a police unit, Alizai told Xinhua

    The police fought back and as a result the three persons were killed, while the other militants ran away, he added.

    Militancy and conflicts have claimed the lives of more than 600people, mostly militants, in Afghanistan this year.