Afghan blast kills US-led troops

Four US-led soldiers and an Afghan national have been killed in a bomb blast in eastern Afghanistan, a US-led coalition forces spokesman said.

The nationalities of the victims were not given, but the majority of troops serving in the region are American.

The coalition did not give the location of the attack or any other details.

The number of US military deaths in Afghanistan in 2008 has already surpassed the record 111 deaths the US suffered last year.

"Four coalition service members and one Afghan national were killed in an IED (improvised explosive device) strike in eastern Afghanistan this morning," the coalition forces said in a statement on Wednesday.

The deaths come as US Defence Secretary Robert Gates is visiting Kabul to hold talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai on the growing violence in the country.