US troops claim to have killed five suspected members of Afghanistan's ousted Taliban regime and arrested five more in the south of the country.
There were no immediate reports of US military casualties from Wednesday morning's encounter in Paj Kotal, a pass to the north of Kandahar province, said a police official in Kandahar city.
General Salim Khan said Mullah Abdul Shukoor, a top Taliban commander for Kandahar province, was among five men arrested during the fighting and all five Taliban captives were in the custody of US troops.
Kandahar was the main stronghold of the hard-line Taliban, which was overthrown by US-led forces in 2001.
But guerrillas have stepped up attacks in the south and east, where more than 25 people, including two British security experts, have been killed in recent weeks.
The US military's top commander in the country, Lt Gen David Barno, said on Tuesday he expected a further increase in Taliban- and al Qaeda-related attacks ahead of Afghanistan's landmark elections planned for September.
The poll was delayed from June, partly due to security concerns.
More than 700 people have been killed, mostly across southern and eastern regions, since last August, the bloodiest period since the Taliban's fall.