Twenty-six Afghan civilians, three local troops and two US soldiers were killed on Thursday in Kunduz province, Afghanistan, US military officials said on Thursday.The two Americans came under fire when working to clear a Taliban position and disrupt the group's operations in a Kunduz district, Xinhua news agency quoted Pentagon as saying in a statement. Another four US troops were also reported wounded in the fighting."The two service members killed and the four who suffered injuries were with Afghan forces as part of our train, advise and assist mission," US Secretary of Defence Ash Carter said in the statement."Some of our Afghan partners also died," Carter said. Local media also reported more than two dozen civilian casualties, including potentially from US airstrikes. The NATO-led Resolute Support mission said on Twitter that US forces conducted airstrikes "to defend friendly forces under fire".