A blast near the gates of the main US base in Afghanistan, where US Vice President Dick Cheney is visiting, killed several people today, a witness said.
The cause of the explosion outside Bagram airbase, 60km north of Kabul, was not immediately known.
Cheney stayed at the base overnight after planned talks with Afghan President Hamid Karzai were delayed by weather.
"The vice-president is fine," spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride said.
An official at the base confirmed the blast, but had no details.
Bagram is a sprawling complex and the main gates are some distance from offices and living quarters.
An Afghan official said the explosion occurred inside a shipping container, but gave no more details, the Pakistan-based Afghan Islamic Press said.
Some containers are used as shops in the market lining the road to the base. Others are carried on trucks to bring supplies into the base.
A Reuters correspondent travelling with the US delegation said they were not aware of the blast until they heard sirens and were told by a military spokesman that the base was "under attack".
"We were told there was a 'red alert'," Caren Bohan said.
"There was a commotion, but it ended pretty quickly. We didn't hear any bomb or anything like that from where we were."
Bagram district governor Kabir Ahmad told AFP the blast was a suicide attack.
"It was a suicide bombing. It took place between the main gate and the gate guarded by American soldiers," Ahmad said.
"We don't have an exact figure but it's said that two have been killed and about 18 wounded."
He said all the dead and injured where Afghans.
http://www.smh.com.au/news/world/deadly-blast-at-base-during-cheney-visit/2007/02/27/1172338617237.html
(AFP)
BAGRAM AIR BASE, Afghanistan – Fifteen Afghans and three foreign soldiers were killed on Tuesday in a suicide attack at an air base where US Vice President Dick Cheney was visiting, the Afghan interior ministry said.
Cheney’s spokeswoman said he was not injured in the incident, which came after bad weather forced Cheney to stay overnight at the base during a surprise visit for talks on the fight against Al Qaeda and the Taleban.
“The vice president is safe,” spokeswoman Lea Anne McBride said. ”The vice president is fine.”
The attack underlined the fragile security situation in Afghanistan, where Cheney arrived Monday after a similar unannounced visit to Pakistan as the United States tries to strengthen the battle against Islamic militants.
The attack occurred inside one of the security gates surrounding the heavily guarded base some 60 kilometres (37 miles) north of the capital Kabul.
“It was a suicide bombing. It took place between the main gate and the gate guarded by American soldiers,” said Bagram district governor Kabir Ahmad.
US Lieutenant Colonel David Accetta said an announcement had been sounded across the base: “The base is under direct attack.” He said he could not give any confirmation of casualties but said the all-clear had been sounded.
Last year was the deadliest in Afghanistan since a US-led invasion in 2001 toppled the hardline Islamic Taleban from power, and there have been fears of a deadly spring offensive by the militants as the weather improves.
Cheney had been expected to meet Afghan leaders to offer support ahead of the offensive by Taleban militants and their Al Qaeda allies. It was not immediately known if Cheney would still meet Afghan President Hamid Karzai.
The vice president met Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf on Monday and urged Islamabad to make greater efforts to track down Al Qaeda and Taleban militants regrouping in the northern tribal areas.
The White House later intensified pressure on Pakistan, which has long been accused by Afghanistan of failing to prevent militants crossing the border to launch attacks against Afghan, US and NATO forces.
Spokesman Tony Snow told reporters in Washington that “a lot more needs to be done” to combat terrorist elements in Pakistan. However he also said it was necessary to continue to support Musharraf.
Cheney’s trip to Pakistan and Afghanistan, which was not announced in advance for security reasons, came amid reports that US aid to Islamabad could be cut if Islamic militants were not hunted down.
His visit follows international concern about the insurgency in Afghanistan. The United States is Kabul’s main supporter and has around 27,000 troops in the country.
Karzai has directly accused Pakistan — which helped the Taleban into government in 1996 -- of involvement in the insurgency. Relations between the Islamic neighbours have crumbled as the violence has intensified.
Pakistan issued a statement after the Cheney meeting on Monday which said Musharraf had urged Pakistani, Afghan, NATO and US forces to take “joint responsibility” for stopping illegal crossings along the 2,500-kilometre (1,550-mile) common border.
He also defended a controversial peace deal with Taleban militants in the North Waziristan tribal region, bordering Afghanistan, that was signed in September.
Pakistan dismissed US claims earlier this month about new Al Qaeda training camps in its northwestern tribal zone as “absurd”. But Musharraf also recently acknowledged that some of his border forces may have been turning a “blind eye” to some militant activities.
Reuters - AFGHAN POLICE CONFIRM BLAST AT U.S. BASE WHERE V.P. CHENEY VISITING WAS SUICIDE ATTACK