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Nato kills 55 Afghan 'militants' Nato 'kills 70 Afghan militants'
(about 6 hours later)
Nato forces in Afghanistan say they have killed 55 suspected militants in clashes in southern Uruzgan province. Nato forces in Afghanistan say they have killed 70 militants in fierce clashes in southern Uruzgan province.
Some 100 to 150 militants attacked the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force troops at their military base north of Tarin Kowt. Up to 150 militants attacked the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) troops at their base north of Tarin Kowt, Nato says.
Troops responded with small arms fire, attack helicopters and air strikes, the alliance said in a statement. In a battle lasting many hours, the alliance called in jets and attack helicopters to repel the assault.
In a separate incident, a Nato solider was killed and eight injured by a roadside bomb, Nato said. In a separate incident in Uruzgan, a Nato soldier was killed when his convoy hit a roadside bomb.
The blast hit a Nato military convoy in the southern province of Uruzgan, the statement said. His nationality has not been disclosed.
Three civilians were also wounded in the attack and were taken to a military hospital for treatment. Uruzgan province is the base for Dutch and Australian Isaf troops, although it is not clear which nationalities were involved in the clash near Tarin Kowt.
Fighting back
Nato said there would be no let up in the battle against the Taliban.
"We're going to keep the pressure up... in every region across the country," alliance spokesman Maj Luke Knitting told AP news agency.
The BBC's Dan Isaacs in Kabul says Nato forces have faced increasingly stiff resistance from Taleban fighters in southern and eastern Afghanistan.
Although Nato has claimed significant success in defeating insurgents in the region, alliance commanders believe Taleban fighters have returned to areas where they had previously been routed, our correspondent adds.
Earlier this week, controversy arose over a Nato bombing raid in which at least 12 civilians were killed in Panjwayi district in the southern province of Kandahar.
Gen James Jones, a top Nato commander, apologised for the deaths, but said Taleban were to blame for using villagers as cover.
One Afghan survivor told the BBC that those attacked were nomads who had been living outside a village in tents.
Afghan President Hamid Karzai said he was "hurt and saddened" by the incident.