US aircraft attacked targets in the northern and eastern quarters of Kabul overnight; a series of loud explosions were reported. Attack helicopters joined the raids for the first time and reports from the city suggest that AC-130 gunship aircraft also saw action.
Elsewhere, an airfield near Kandahar and Taleban positions at Darra-e-sof near the strategic northern city of Mazar-e-Sharif were hit.
The raids reportedly encountered little opposition, suggesting that Taleban air defences are now severely crippled, or running short of ammunition.