A rocket fired by insurgents on a US base in Afghanistan destroyed a military helicopter on the eve of the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, killing three Afghans, officials said on Tuesday.
The Chinook helicopter caught fire and was destroyed as it prepared to take off late on Monday from Bagram air base, the largest US military base in the war-torn country, a Nato military spokesperson said.
“They were preparing for an operation,” the spokesperson said, adding the helicopter was hit by “indirect fire”.
Three Afghans were killed and several Afghan and foreign “service members” were wounded, the spokesperson said, but gave no further details.
Roshana Khalid, a spokeswoman for the Parwan province where the base is located confirmed the incident and said three Afghan intelligence agents were killed and two senior security officials wounded.
They were to conduct an anti-Taliban operation in an area near Bagram, she said.