Up to six Taliban insurgents were killed Saturday in a blast in eastern Afghan province of Ghazni, police said.

"A local Taliban leader named Mullah Saddiq, along with five militias, were killed after improvised explosive devices (IEDs) they were building went off prematurely in Khoshak locality of the provincial capital Ghazni city at around morning," deputy provincial police chief Asadullah Insafi told Xinhua.

The killed militants planned to use the IEDs to target security forces.

"Local people tried to stop the militants from entering the holly place but failed. The mosque building was destroyed in the explosion but no civilian was hurt in the incident," he noted.

In northern Sari Pul province, two militants were killed and six others wounded during a military operation conducted by the army soldiers earlier on the day.

The security forces have recently intensified operations across the country as spring and summer known as the fighting season is drawing near.

The Taliban insurgent group has yet to make comments.