One Dead in Afghan Attack

According to the US embassy in Kabul, a gunman opened fire on employees of a US construction firm after they boarded a helicopter in Afghanistan's troubled south, killing the pilot and wounding two others.

A man claiming to represent remnants of the ousted Taliban regime immediately claimed responsibility for the attack on the civilian helicopter.

"An unidentified assailant fired an AK-47 automatic rifle at four employees of the Louis Berger construction firm just after they boarded a helicopter and were preparing to take off," according to a statement from the embassy.

"The passengers included two security guards and a construction supervisor who was inspecting one of seven health clinics being supervised by Berger in the Kandahar area. The pilot died at the scene."

One of the security guards escaped injury, the statement said.