At least 20 Taliban militants were killed in air strike against the militants' hideout in Afghanistan's eastern Paktika province late Friday, spokesman of local administration said on Saturday.

"The international troops' warplanes targeted suspected hideout of the militants in Urgon district Friday evening, killing over 20 rebels at the spot," Hamidullah Zuwak told Xinhua.

In separate incident, seven armed militants were arrested as Afghan National Security Forces backed by international troops launched an operation against militants in the same district earlier the day, he added.

Taliban militants fighting Afghan, U.S. and NATO forces have yet to make comments.

War-plagued Afghanistan has seen increasing Taliban-led insurgency throughout the country while U.S. president Barack Obama has approved to send additional 13,000 troops to curb the deteriorating situation. Enditem

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