Taliban militants including suicide bombers attacked a US military base in southeastern Afghanistan but were pushed back by Afghan and foreign forces using airstrikes, reports were saying on Tuesday.

The attack late Monday against Camp Salerno, a US military base in Khost province, came hours after a suicide bomber detonated his explosive-filled vehicle outside the same base, killing 10 civilians and wounding 13.

Afghan and US military forces were still clashing with a group of "fleeing Taliban" who tried to enter the base, provincial governor Arsala Jamal told Deutsche Presse-Agentur dpa on Tuesday.

The governor said the militants stormed the base but were pushed back by Afghan and international forces using airstrikes.

"Some of the attackers were exploding their explosives tied around their bodies before the forces could arrest them," he said, citing Afghan army commanders on the ground.

A spokeswoman for the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Kabul confirmed the attack against their base outside Khost city and said that six suicide bombers were involved in the raid.

She could not give more details other than saying that the clash with the militants was still going on.

Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed a group of 15 suicide bombers entered the base and killed and wounded a large number of soldiers.

"Fifteen of our mujahedin, all equipped with light and heavy weapons, entered the military base and attacked several compounds inside the base, where the foreign forces were staying," Mujahid said in a statement posted on a Taliban website.

Meanwhile, ISAF said in a statement on Tuesday that their forces had been involved in "a significant incident with insurgents in Kabul province" since Monday afternoon.

"The incident occurred in the late afternoon and remains ongoing," the statement said, adding that more information would be given later.

Kabul city has been the scene of frequent Taliban attacks in recent months.