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At least seven rockets have been fired into the heart of the Afghan capital, Kabul, in a rare attack that comes less than three weeks before presidential elections.
Police said that at least one child was injured in Tuesday's attack on what is thought of as one of the safest parts of the country.
Said Abdul Ghafar, the Kabul police chief, said that one rocket landed in the Wazir Akbar Khan diplomatic area, home to various embassies, including the US embassy, as well as the Nato-led force headquarters in Afghanistan.
He said that the rest landed elsewhere in Kabul, at least one in a residential neighborhood.
Witnesses said the rockets caused extensive damage, including broken windows.
A few rounds of gunfire followed the rockets.
A police officer in eastern Kabul said that it was not clear why the shots had been fired but that security forces were all on alert.
Run-up to polls
Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Kabul, said that rocket attacks on the capital were now unusual in war-torn Afghanistan.
"Attacks like this are very, very rare in Kabul," he said.
"This city used to come under regular rocket attack during the civil war, also during the period after the fall of the Taliban government in 2001 and 2002 there were occasional rocket attacks, but it is something that is now not common."
The Kabul attack has further raised tensions ahead of Afghanistan's presidential election, due to be held on August 20.
The election commission has warned that about 700 polling stations may not be open because of the security situation.
Tuesday's 90-minute rocket barrage comes a day after 12 people, including a child, a woman and two police officers, were killed in a bomb blast in western Afghanistan.
Another 30 people were wounded, including Mohammad Issa, the district police chief.
The Taliban claimed responsibility for Monday's attack in the province of Heart, which, like the capital Kabul, has been relatively peaceful and prosperous.
New Nato chief
The attacks come as Anders Fogh Rasmussen, the former Danish prime minister, starts work as the new secretary general of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (Nato).
In his first major speech as the military alliance's head on Monday, Rasmussen said that during his five year term he wanted to see "Afghans take over responsibility for security in most of their country".
"Nato must and will be there in support. Let no Taliban propagandist try to sell my message as a run for the exit. It is not.
"We will support the Afghan people for as long as it takes. But ... this means helping them stand on their own feet," Rasmussen said.
PHOTO CAPTION
Afghan police men inspect next to the broken window of a residential house after a rocket hit it near the U.S Embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, Tuesday, Aug. 4, 2009.
Al-Jazeera
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