The Taliban launched a volley of rockets near Kabul's international airport on Wednesday shortly after US Defence Secretary Jim Mattis arrived in the Afghan capital for talks, an official said.

An Afghan woman was killed and 11 other civilians were wounded as the volley of missiles struck both the international and the military sections of the airport, as well as two civilian houses nearby.

Police had cordoned off the area to find the exact location from which the rockets were fired, interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish told AFP.

In an ensuing battle, Afghan special forces managed to repel the attackers, killing four. Tumor Shah Hamedi, director of Kabul airport, said all flights were halted as a result of the attack.

Zabihullah Mujahid, a Taliban spokesman, claimed responsibility for the attack on his official Twitter account.

According to TOLONews, between 20 to 30 rockets landed around Hamid Karzai International Airport in the centre of Kabul; the attack started at about 11:15am (local time).

Attack on security post

In other violence, hundreds of Taliban insurgents attacked a security post in Afghanistan's western Farha province, killing at least 10 policemen and threatening to overrun the position.

Hakim Noori, the governor of the Pusht Rod district, said almost 300 Taliban fighters took part in the attack, which began on Tuesday night. He said the insurgents mined the area around the base to prevent authorities from sending in reinforcements.

Farid Bakhtawar, the head of the provincial council, confirmed the killing of the policemen and warned they would be overrun if reinforcements do not arrive soon.

Costs of leaving Afghanistan

Earlier, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis arrived in Afghanistan, the first member of Donald Trump's cabinet to visit the war-torn country since he pledged to stay the course in America's longest war.

During a joint press conference with Mattis and Nato Chief Jens Stoltenberg, Afghan President Ashraf Ghani said that Afghan special forces troops quickly brought the rocket attack under control. Mattis called the it “a crime” during the news conference, which was broadcast live.

At the presser, both Mattis and Stoltenberg pledged continued support for Afghanistan and vowed to do everything possible so the country “doesn't again become a safe haven for international terrorists.”

Stoltenberg said Nato is aware of “the cost of staying in Afghanistan, but the cost of leaving would be even higher.”

“If Nato forces leave too soon, there is a risk that Afghanistan may return to a state of chaos and once again become a safe haven for international terrorism,” he said.

Stoltenberg also said Nato was committed to funding the Afghan security forces until at least 2020, and would continue to provide them almost a $1 billion each year.

Ghani said the Taliban can choose either to align with international terrorism or renounce violence and join a peace process with the government.

Mattis said Washington supports a negotiated settlement between the Taliban and Afghanistan. “The sooner the Taliban recognize they cannot win with bombs, the sooner the killing will end,” he said.

The unannounced high-level visit comes as Afghanistan's beleaguered security forces struggle to beat back the Taliban, which has been on the offensive since the withdrawal of US-led Nato combat troops at the end of 2014.