Afghanistan: An Afghan soldier, five private security guards and 20 militants were killed after insurgents ambushed a NATO supply convoy in western Afghanistan triggering a three-hour-long gun fight.

“The insurgents attacked the NATO supply convoy yesterday late afternoon in Bala Buluk district of Farah province,” said Raouf Ahmadi, spokesman for the regional police commander.

He said that the gun fight lasted for three hours and five guards were killed while an equal number were wounded.

An Afghan soldier was also killed.

Ahmadi said that 20 militants were killed, five wounded while two were arrested.

He said the militants were using light and heavy weapons.

Sayed Abdul Wahid, an official of the Arya security company, said his workers, who were fighting with AK-47s, were overpowered by militants using heavy weapons, including rocket-propelled grenades.

He said five of his employees were killed and five others were wounded by insurgents who burned three vehicles in the convoy.

Meanwhile, an International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) service member died following an improvised explosive device attack in southern Afghanistan today.

ISAF however did not provide any further details.

In a separate incident, an explosion ripped through a house in eastern Afghanistan this morning, though there were no reports of any casualty.

“An explosion happened in a house in Bihsud district in Nangarhar province this morning,” said provincial governor’s spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai.

He said there were no casualty as a result of the blast.

Abdulzai also dismissed reports of any explosion near Indian Consulate in Jalalabad city.

“We do not have any report of any explosion near Indian Consulate in Jalalabad city,” he added.