Two rockets hit Afghan base, several hurt

KABUL, July 1 (Reuters) Two rockets hit the main international military base in southern Afghanistan wounding several people including two Canadian soldiers, one of them critically, a Canadian military spokesman said.

Violence has surged in Afghanistan in recent months to its worst level since the Taliban were ousted in 2001. More than 1,100 people, including about 50 foreign troops, have been killed since January.

Two 107 mm rockets hit the main foreign military base at the airport in the town of Kandahar today evening.

Taliban occasionally fire rockets into the sprawling base, home to 7,000 soldiers and civilian workers, but they usually explode harmlessly on open ground. Yesterday's attack was the first time anyone had been hurt.

''Two explosions occurred within the perimeter of Kandahar air field,'' said the Canadian military spokesman, Major Marc Theriault.

''One of them occurred in a common area and several people from various nations were wounded, among them two Canadian soldiers. One was lightly wounded, the other was critically wounded,'' he said.

Theriault declined to give details of the other wounded, saying he was only authorised to speak about Canadians.

Another international force spokesman, Major Quentin Innis, declined to say how many people had been hurt or to give their nationalities, but said the number was small.

Innis also declined to say where the rockets hit, saying that information would be useful to the Taliban.

Theriault said the attack was the seventh since he arrived at the base in February. In all, 22 rockets had been fired at the base, he said.

The Canadian in critical condition was being evacuated to Germany, he said.

In a separate incident, gunmen attacked a police post in the generally peaceful north of the country early today, seriously wounding two men, police said.

It was the first suspected insurgent attack in the town of Koad-e-Barq, in Balkh province, and follows a series attacks on foreign troops in the north that have raised fears the Taliban are expanding operations from their southern and eastern heartland.

REUTERS SI ND1222