NATO, Pakistani Troops Fight Militants on Afghan-Pakistani Border

NATO says its forces, in coordination with the Pakistani military, have beaten back a militant attack on a NATO post in Afghanistan.

A statement from NATO's International Security Assistance Force said Tuesday that the fighting erupted Monday night in Afghanistan's Khost province.

NATO says its forces used mortars, artillery and air strikes to push back the militants. Pakistani troops then fired on the retreating rebels, killing several of them inside Pakistan.

A spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition, Lieutenant Nathan Perry, also says U.S and NATO troops killed 33 militants in another district of Khost province Monday.

Pakistan's military support Monday was a rare show of cooperation with NATO and underscores the government's newly declared policy to forcibly stop militants from using Pakistani territory to attack Afghanistan.

Separately in Afghanistan's Zabul province Tuesday, officials say five Taliban militants died in a clash with police.

Also, in the southern province of Uruzgan, authorities say four Afghan police officers died when their vehicle struck a roadside bomb.

The U.S. and Afghanistan have expressed increasing concern about the buildup of Taliban militants in Pakistan, along the border with Afghanistan.

Pakistan has rejected accusations that it is harboring militants, and has increased efforts in recent months to address the problem.

Afghan, NATO and U.S. troops have been fighting Taliban militants and other rebels in Afghanistan since a U.S.-led invasion removed the Taliban from power in late 2001.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP.