Taliban in ground assault on Nato air base

Militants set off a car bomb and stormed the entrance to a major Nato air base in eastern Afghanistan, and eight insurgents died in the failed assault.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack, the third ground assault against a major coalition base in the past five weeks. The attackers failed to overrun the bases but showed that the Taliban have not been cowed by the US surge.

Using light weapons and rocket-propelled grenades, the militants fought for 30 minutes around the airport outside Jalalabad city. An Afghan soldier and a Nato serviceman were wounded.