PESHAWAR: Gunmen on Saturday intercepted three container trucks carrying Nato supplies en route to Afghanistan in the troubled Khyber tribal region and torched one of them, officials said.

The incident happened near Jamrud area of Khyber, one of seven districts that make up Pakistan's semi-autonomous tribal belt, as they were on their way to Afghanistan.

“At least five gunmen intercepted the trucks and later torched one of them after asking their drivers and helpers to get down,” a senior local administration official, Ali Sher told news agency AFP.

A local intelligence official also confirmed the incident.

Pakistan is a major transit supply route for the Nato mission in landlocked Afghanistan.

No group has admitted responsibility but the Taliban have in the past claimed such attacks.

Trucks travelling through Pakistan to supply US-led forces have frequently been attacked during Nato’s 13-year intervention in Afghanistan.