Afghan official: US soldier shoots, kills boy near base

A US soldier shot and killed an Afghan boy today near an American airfield close to the capital Kabul, a senior Afghan police officer said.
The boy, whose age is unknown, had been carrying what looked like an automatic rifle near the Bagram Airfield, 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Kabul in neighboring Parwan province, said the provincial police chief, Gen. Zaman Mamozai.
An American soldier had warned the boy from a watchtower to stop, he said.
Local people gathered near the base to protest the killing of the boy, but dispersed once they were told about the circumstances, Mamozai said. He said the incident is being investigated.

Bagram officials could not immediately be reached for comment. The US military in Kabul said it was looking into the incident.
Earlier, an Afghan official said overnight attacks by the Taliban on two police checkpoints in the volatile southern province of Helmand killed at least eight police.

Col Almas Kahn, deputy police chief in Helmand, said the attack happened in the Gereshk district around midnight. Though Kahn blamed the Taliban, the group did not immediately claim responsibility for the attack. Afghan forces have been trying to reduce the number of checkpoints as they are vulnerable to insurgent attacks.
Separately, the Taliban claimed responsibility for firing a series of rockets at Kabul's new parliament building early today. No casualties were reported.

Rockets are occasionally fired at government and diplomatic areas in Kabul, but casualties are rare and the capital has seen few deadly attacks in recent months.