Taliban claims it shot down US plane

The Taliban is claiming it has shot down a US plane near Kandahar airport, according to reports.

The Taliban's former Ambassador to Pakistan didn't give details but said he presumed the pilots had been killed.

The US is denying the claims.

The Taliban have previously claimed to have shot down manned US planes - these later turned out to be false.

The claim comes as the Taliban supreme leader Mullah Mohammed Omar's language becomes increasingly strident.

"Mullah Omar has advised and instructed everyone to fight to the death and not to bow down in front of brutality and blasphemy," Mullah Abdul Salam Zaeef said.

Kandahar, the Taliban's spiritual home, is their last major stronghold in the country.