In Afghanistan, ten French soldiers have died after clashes with the Taliban near Kabul. It was the deadliest incident for French troops since 1983. France has 3,000 troops in Afghanistan. Prior to today, twelve French troops had died in the Afghan war. The Taliban ambush on the French troops was one of several violent attacks on foreign troops over the past twenty-four hours. Earlier today, US forces repelled an attack by several suicide bombers on an American base in eastern Afghanistan. NATO said seven militants died in the attempted attack. On Monday, a suicide bomber outside the same US base killed ten Afghan civilians and wounded thirteen others. Monday’s bombing occurred as Afghanistan celebrated its Independence Day. Due to security concerns, the country’s official Independence ceremony had to be held inside a fortified military compound in Kabul.