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UN chief's plane diverted to US base after rocket attack

Other News Materials 20 July 2010 11:50 (UTC +04:00)
A rocket attack on Kabul's international airport forced UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Swedish foreign Minsiter Carl Bildt to land at a US military base, Bildt said Tuesday.
UN chief's plane diverted to US base after rocket attack

A rocket attack on Kabul's international airport forced UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and Swedish foreign Minsiter Carl Bildt to land at a US military base, Bildt said Tuesday, DPA reported.

Ban and Bildt were travelling on the same plane to the Afghan capital that is Tuesday hosting an international donor conference attended by scores of foreign ministers and other officials.

"It was expected that the Taliban and others would try to disrupt the key conference," Bildt wrote on his blog.

Ban and Bildt landed instead at the Bagram base and were flown by helicopter to Kabul.

A plane transporting Denmark's Foreign Minister Lene Espersen was also unable to land at Kabul airport and was diverted to neighbouring Kazakhstan, Danish media reported.

It was not known if Espersen would be able to attend the latter part of the conference where she had planned to give a speech on women's rights.

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