An Afghan in army uniform shot and killed two international service members inside a Nato base in southern Afghanistan today.

Taliban gunmen have stormed one of Afghanistan’s premier hotels, sparking a five-hour battle that left 19 people dead, including all eight attackers.

Two Nato helicopters have killed three gunmen on top of a hotel in Kabul after insurgents attacked with suicide bombers, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades, coalition sources in Afghanistan said.