US Marines in eastern Afghanistan

The U.S. military says one U.S. Marine and one Afghan government soldier have been killed in fighting with militants in eastern Afghanistan.

A military statement says four other Afghan soldiers were wounded in the clash Thursday as they tried to "disrupt enemy forces" in Kunar province to prepare for next month's parliamentary elections.

The wounded Afghan soldiers were taken to a nearby U.S. base in the city of Asadabad for treatment. Two of them later returned to duty.

The deaths came on the same day that two U.S. soldiers were killed by a roadside bomb in the southern province of Kandahar.

Violence in Afghanistan has surged in recent months as Taleban insurgents try to sabotage next month's parliamentary polls.