Rockets hit Afghan market, apparently targeting French general; 12 dead

Rockets at Afghan market kill 12, wound 38

TAGAB VALLEY, Afghanistan — French forces say the death toll from rockets fired at a crowded market northeast of Kabul where the head of French forces in Afghanistan was holding a meeting with tribal elders has increased to 12.

Lt. Col. Lionel, who can only be identified by his first name in accordance with French military policy, says the attack on the market in the town of Tagab in Kapisa province killed 12 civilians and wounded another 38.

Lionel witnessed the attack and said the target had been the meeting, known as a shura, where Brig. Gen. Marcel Druart was discussing with elders a major French offensive in the Tagab Valley the previous day.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP’s earlier story is below.

TAGAB VALLEY, Afghanistan (AP) — Insurgents fired two rockets Monday into a crowded market northeast of Kabul where the head of French forces in Afghanistan was holding a meeting with tribal elders. The attack killed four people and wounded another 38, the French military said.

Lt. Col. Lionel, who can only be identified by his first name in accordance with French military policy, witnessed the attack in the town of Tagab in Kapisa province and said the target had been the meeting, known as a shura, where Brig. Gen. Marcel Druart was discussing with elders a major French offensive in the Tagab Valley the previous day.

“The target was clearly the shura,” Lionel said, explaining that these types of meetings were vulnerable because so many invitations to attend were issued in advance.

He said one of the rockets had fallen about 200 meters (yards) from the shura. He denied earlier army reports that it landed just a dozen meters (yards) away.

The general was not hurt in the attack, and French officers said none of the wounded were NATO troops. One French Caracal and three U.S. Blackhawk helicopters evacuated those hurt from the area.

Lionel said about 20 of the wounded were in serious or critical condition. Another French officer, Capt. Michel, who also can only be identified by his first name, said three of those killed were children.

Druart is the commander of the French La Fayette Task Force in Afghanistan. France has more than 3,000 troops stationed mainly north of Kabul in the Kapisa and Surobi areas.

The shura was being held inside a district center next to the town’s main market and was attended by about 40 Afghan officials, including the local police chief, the regional deputy governor, tribal chiefs and religious elders. The meeting had been going for about 90 minutes when the attack occurred, Lionel said.

NATO forces said they had spotted the rocket launch site and retaliated with artillery. Sporadic shelling could be heard through the afternoon.

The meeting had been called to discuss Sunday’s offensive, during which about 700 French and 100 Afghan soldiers with more than 100 armored vehicles launched an offensive in the hostile valley, where militants stage quick strikes, then disappear into villages. Gunmen fired from the roofs of houses on the advancing column of vehicles during the pre-dawn operation.

The offensive aimed to secure the area for a planned road, financed by the European Union, to move supplies from neighboring Pakistan, said Col. Francis Chanson, head of France’s 3rd Marine Infantry Regiment.

NATO forces have bases in the Tagab Valley but have had difficulty stabilizing the mountainous area connected by small footpaths. Just 30 miles (50 kilometers) from Kabul, the valley is seen as a launch pad for attacks on the capital.

In September, two French soldiers were killed and eight wounded in a roadside bomb attack in the Tagab area.

Separately in southern Afghanistan, militants attacked a police checkpoint in the violent province of Kandahar overnight, killing at least three policemen and wounding another six, police criminal director of Kandahar Pashton Moamand said.

However, a local police official from the Argandab district where the attack occurred had a higher death toll. The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said eight policemen were killed and three seriously wounded. He said a group of militants attacked the checkpoint from three sides with gunfire and grenades at about 2 a.m. Monday, and then fled.

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Associated Press writer Noor Khan in Kandahar contributed to this report.