Multiple rockets hit the Afghan city of Ghazni during a visit by President Ashraf Ghani, according to officials and residents of the city which is still struggling to return to normal after it was overrun by Taliban fighters last month.
At least two rockets landed within 300 metres of the governor’s compound where President Ghani was meeting local officials, while a third struck further off, Ahmad Khan Sirat, spokesperson for Ghazni police said.
There was no word on any casualties but light and heavy weapons fire could be heard, he said.
Ghazni, on the main highway between the capital Kabul and southern Afghanistan, still bears the scars of days of heavy combat last month when hundreds of Taliban fighters stormed the city and overran large parts of the centre.
More than 200 civilians were killed and hundreds more wounded during the five-day assault.
People were trapped in their homes for five days as thousands of Taliban fighters and Afghan soldiers fought in the streets.
The battle left at least 100 members of Afghan security forces dead.
The attackers were eventually driven off with heavy losses by Afghan forces backed by US air attacks but the assault caused shock across Afghanistan, underlining the group’s ability to mount large-scale attacks on major cities.
Ghani’s visit to Ghazni, accompanied by his wife, was aimed at assessing the security situation in the city.
SOURCE: Al Jazeera and news agencies
