7 US troops injured in attack by rogue Afghan soldier

An Afghan soldier opened fire on foreign troops at a military base in northern Afghanistan, leaving at least seven US troops injured.

The attack on Saturday took place at the Afghan National Army's 209th Corps headquarters in the province of Balkh, located some 540 km to the northwest of Kabul.

A spokesperson for the NATO defense mission in Afghanistan confirmed that the incident took place at Camp Shaheen in the capital of Balkh province Mazar-e-Sharif, Efe news reported.

The spokesperson confirmed that there were no deaths among members of the NATO mission or US troops, adding that an Afghan soldier (presumably the assailant) had been killed and another one injured.

He said that an investigation was ongoing into the circumstances of the attack.

A spokesman for the 209th Corps, Abdul Qahar Aram, previously said that an Afghan soldier had opened fire on foreign forces stationed in that base.

Muhammad Radmanish, a spokesman for the Afghan Ministry of Defense, said that the attacker was shot dead by foreign forces, and stressed that an investigation into the incident had been opened.

The Taliban insurgency had targeted the same base late in April, killing 135 people and injuring another 64.

--IANS

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