US military chief's plane hit by rockets

Militants have fired rockets into an American base in Afghanistan, damaging the US joint chief of staff's plane while he was on a visit, a military official said today.

The American military chief was not near the aircraft at the time of the attack and no-one was injured.

NATO spokesman Jamie Graybeal said the attack at Bagram Air Field outside Kabul last night did not affect US Army General Martin Dempsey's mission in Afghanistan.

He said Gen Dempsey left this morning, though it was unclear if he went on the same plane.

The chief was in Afghanistan to discuss the state of the war after a string of disturbing killings of US military trainers by their Afghan partners.

So far this year, 40 coalition troops have died in green on blue incidents, including seven British soldiers.

from BFBS
21 August 2012
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ISAF Joint Command

KABUL, Afghanistan – International Security Assistance Force can confirm that shrapnel from an indirect fire round at Bagram Air Field damaged the military aircraft that brought Gen. Martin E. Dempsey to Afghanistan. The round was one of two that impacted Bagram last night. An ISAF helicopter was also damaged.

Gen. Dempsey, the U.S. chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, was in Afghanistan visiting senior ISAF and Afghan officials. The chairman was in his room at the time of the incident and was unharmed.

Due to some exterior damage to Gen. Dempsey’s aircraft, he left Afghanistan on a different military plane.

Posted in: Afghanistan, BAGRAM AIRFIELD, Kabul, Martin Dempsey, NATO