Afghan forces are struggling to hold the police HQ in the town of Sangin in Helmand province, amid a siege by Taliban fighters, officials say.

But there are conflicting reports as to who controls the whole district.

The Helmand governor and police dismissed Taliban reports that it now controlled it as “totally false”.

Sangin district has fallen to Taliban control several times and the fighting has caused significant casualties among Afghan and international forces.

In the east, a Taliban attack near Bagram on Monday killed six US soldiers. It was one of the deadliest attacks on foreign forces in Afghanistan this year.

Three rockets were also fired into Kabul overnight on Monday.