The bombardment of Arghistan, about 100 kilometres (60 miles) southeast of Kandahar and near the border town of Spin Boldak on Tuesday had scattered the 200 remnants of the Taliban believed to be present in the area, Kandahar intelligence chief Abdullah Laghmanai said.

"During the operation 20 Taliban were killed, two of them were senior commanders," Laghmanai told AFP.

He named the two Taliban commanders as Qari Faizullah and Qari Ali Mohammed.

Afghan troops had joined the US forces and were still pursuing Taliban fighters along the border.

"The operation is still on going with government troops chasing down Taliban to the Pakistani border," Laghmanai said.

"According to our intelligence we estimated that 200 Taliban were in the area and now they have scattered."

Laghmanai said the US-led coalition provided air support but none of their troops was on the ground.

Afghanistan's southeast border with Pakistan is at the center of a bloody insurgency by Taliban fighters, many of whom operate out of sanctuaries over the border in Pakistan's remote tribal areas.

WAR.WIRE