AFGHANISTAN: Rockets fired at capital ahead of Rice visit

[ This report does not necessarily reflect the views of the United Nations]

KABUL, 12 Oct 2005 (IRIN) - Two rockets hit the Afghan capital Kabul early on Wednesday, injuring two guards at the Canadian ambassador's residence, officials said.

The attack is the latest in a series of killings and explosions to have taken place in the war-ravaged country in recent weeks and came hours before a visit by US Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice, who is on a tour of Central Asia. She was scheduled to discuss terrorism, militancy, opium proliferation and reconstruction efforts with Afghan President Hamid Karzai.

“Two guards were injured, one of them had minor injuries while another suffered non-life threatening wounds,” Canadian embassy political officer Alain Cacchione said on Wednesday, adding that the guards were taken to hospital for treatment.

“The rockets were fired at 0410 local time from the eastern outskirts of the city,” interior ministry spokesman Yousuf Stanizai said, adding that another rocket landed near a logistics office of the national security department, causing no damage.

Stanizai blamed the attacks on the “enemies of peace and stability in Afghanistan” - the term often used by the government to refer to the ousted Taliban. He said that an investigation was under way into the attacks.

Attacks have increased since the country’s landmark 18 September legislative elections. The first was made on the election day itself, when two rockets landed close to a UN compound in the city. In a second attack, two rockets were fired at a vote-counting centre on the outskirts of the capital.

[ENDS]