An official claimed at least three rockets hit Kandahar airport in southern Afghanistan overnight, as the Taliban continued their sweeping attack across the nation.

"Three rockets were launched at the airport last night, two of which hit the runway... All flights from the airport have been canceled as a result of this" Massoud Pashtun, the airport's administrator, said AFP on Sunday.

Work on repairing the runway is proceeding, according to Pashtun, who expects the airport to reopen later on Sunday.

The rocket attack was confirmed by a representative from Kabul's civil aviation authority.

Kandahar under attack

The Taliban have been launching ferocious assaults on the outskirts of Kandahar for weeks, raising worries that the rebels were close to taking the province capital.

The airbase in Kandahar is critical for providing the logistics and air support required to prevent extremists from taking control of Afghanistan's second-largest city.

The Taliban were closing in on two other provincial capitals, Herat in the west and Lashkar Gah in the south, when they attacked the airport.

During the last stages of the US military pullout, the Taliban made considerable territory gains, mostly in thinly populated rural areas.

However, they have increased pressure on several provincial capitals and seized important border crossings in recent weeks.

The Taliban's present attack would be taken to a new level if any major urban centers were captured, fueling fears that the army would be unable to fend off the Taliban's military victories.

The Taliban's steady territorial advances during the summer have been rejected by the administration as having no strategic relevance.