All three attackers died in a gunfight with Afghan police and soldiers at the Torkham border crossing with Pakistan, Nangarhar provincial spokesman Ahmad Zia Abdulzai told AFP.

"After making it into the parking lot, they used magnetic bombs to destroy some 37 NATO vehicles and fuel trucks," he said.

"They were killed in an hour-long gun battle with security forces, who did not suffer any casualties."

The Taliban claimed responsibility via a recognised Twitter account.

A spokesman for NATO's International Security Assistance Force said the attack occurred outside Forward Operating Base Torkham.

"There was significant damage to several vehicles," he said.

NATO vehicles in parking lots at the border have been attacked before, with one policeman killed in a similar assault in December.

Torkham is a key crossing into Pakistan for NATO supplies leaving Afghanistan as the US-led coalition withdraws.

(AFP)