Insurgents kill 9 U.S. troops in Afghanistan

By Mirwais Afghan

KABUL (Reuters) - Insurgents killed nine U.S. soldiers in an assault on an Afghan army and NATO outpost in northeastern Afghanistan on Sunday, making it one of the worst days for foreign troops casualties in the country since 2001.

Afghanistan is suffering from a rising tide of violence this year, with a sharp increase in Taliban attacks, especially in the east where NATO says militants have taken advantage of peace deals in Pakistan to cross the border and fight in Afghanistan.

"The fighting began in the early morning hours and continued into the day as insurgents were repulsed from an Afghan National Army and ISAF combat outpost," a statement by the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) said.

The dead soldiers were all American, a NATO official said. Fifteen ISAF troops and four Afghan soldiers were also wounded in the fighting.

"Although no final assessment has been made, it is believed insurgents suffered heavy casualties during several hours of fighting," it said. The fighting took place in the northeastern province of Kunar, close to the border with Pakistan and also to neighboring Nuristan province.

Afghan authorities said earlier in the day five Pakistani Taliban were killed and 13 more wounded after they infiltrated Nuristan province on Saturday. The Defence Ministry said dozens of insurgents were killed and dozens more wounded in a counter-attack by the Afghan army in Nuristan on Sunday.

ISAF said they had no record of any fighting in Nuristan on Sunday, so it was not clear whether Afghan authorities were referring to the same clashes which the NATO force said were in a nearby area of Kunar province.

RISING VIOLENCE  Continued...