Suicide bomber hits Western troop convoy in Kabul

KABUL, Aug 25 (Reuters) A suicide bomber struck a convoy of Western troops today in Afghan capital, Kabul, but there was no immediate word of casualties, a police official said.

The attack happened on a road leading east from the city which is regularly used by NATO and US-led troops.

An Afghan source with a Western security agency said two NATO soldiers were wounded in the attack, but a spokeswoman for the NATO-led force said she had no word on casualties.

Violence has surged in Afghanistan in the past 19 months, the bloodiest period since US-led troops toppled the Taliban government in 2001.

Yesterday night, a rocket landed inside a hospital compound in Kabul, but caused no casualties or damage, hospital officials said today.

Taliban insurgents occasionally fire rockets into Kabul, but they rarely cause any casualties. Yesterday's attack hit the Wazir Akbar Khan area of Kabul where many foreign embassies and aid organisations have their offices.

''It was 11 pm (local time) when a rocket hit inside the Wazir Akbar Khan compound,'' said a doctor who worked at the Wazir Akbar Khan hospital. ''No one was wounded or killed, and the hospital received no damage. It hit a garden inside the hospital.'' No rebel group claimed responsibility for the attack.

REUTERS RAR BD1904