US special forces kill five in Afghan clash

American special forces killed five attackers after they were ambushed in eastern Afghanistan, a US military spokesman said today.

No coalition forces were injured, Colonel Roger King said at Bagram air base.

About 20 gunmen attacked the special forces convoy on a road between Gardez and Khost. Two of the attackers were captured and taken for questioning.

The military said at least five others were killed, but the fate of the rest was not immediately clear.

The US commandos, who were accompanied by a few Afghan fighters, called in F-16s and A-10 aircraft as support in a firefight that lasted several hours.

King said the planes dropped two 500lb bombs on suspected enemy positions and fired hundreds of rounds of ammunition.

“The road that goes through the pass is a traditional ambush site,” King said. Attacks on coalition bases in the area are a nearly daily occurrence.

Most involve rockets fired at US bases using crude timers, and most of them are well wide of their mark.

It was not immediately clear who carried out yesterday’s ambush, but US officials believe al-Qaida, remnants of the former Taliban regime and loyalists of renegade rebel leader Gulbuddin Hekmatyar are active in the area.