Joint Chefs Chairman Gen. Martin Dempsey testifies on Capitol Hill in Washington before the Senate Defense subcommittee hearing on the the Defense Department's fiscal 2013 budget.
Afghan Rockets Damage US Military Chief's Plane
NATO officials said Afghan militants fired rockets on a U.S. airbase in Afghanistan, damaging a plane used by America's top military officer.
Bagram Airbase, Afghanistan
A spokeswoman told VOA U.S. Joint Chiefs of Staff chairman General Martin Dempsey was in his room and "nowhere near" the aircraft when two rockets landed near it early Tuesday at Bagram Airbase. He later left the base in another plane.
Shrapnel from the attack slightly wounded two ground staff members and also damaged a helicopter.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.
Sporadic shelling is not uncommon at Bagram Airbase, but Taliban insurgents rarely inflict serious damage or casualties at the facility, north of Kabul.
Dempsey had arrived in the country Monday for talks with NATO and Afghan commanders that focused on a series of recent killings of international troops by Afghan security forces.
Afghan security forces have killed 10 international troops, mostly Americans, in the past two weeks. In the latest incident Sunday, a person wearing an Afghan police uniform shot and killed a coalition service member. At least 39 international coalition members have been killed in such attacks this year.
Some information for this report was provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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