Two Marines Die In Prince Harry Base Attack

Militants have attacked a major Allied military base in Afghanistan where Prince Harry is stationed, leaving two US Marines dead and several others hurt.

US officials said the attack last night was by heavily-armed insurgents and involved a range of weaponry, including mortars, rockets and small arms fire.

They confirmed two marines had died and several troops were injured.

There are no indications of any British fatalities or injuries.

Prince Harry was about two kilometres away with other crew members of the Apache attack helicopters, of which he is a co-pilot gunner, when the attack took place, sources said. He was unharmed.

A Nato spokesman said the prince, who is third in line to the throne, was "never in any danger".

The attack occurred near an airfield on the north-east side of the base, which houses American forces in Camp Leatherneck.

A number of aircraft, hangars and other buildings at the base were hit and badly damaged.

An Isaf spokesman said: "I can confirm there was an attack involving small arms fire.

"The attack is long over and now UK and US forces are in the process of conducting an assessment to discover the extent of the damage and go through the camp to make sure everything is secure."

Another Isaf spokesman, Major Martyn Crighton, described the attack as "complex", in that insurgents used AK47-type weapons as well as mortars or rockets.

It is understood the militants managed to breach Camp Bastion's perimeter using rocket-propelled grenades before being driven back by forces inside the camp.

But he said there was no evidence to suggest whether the attack had been planned in advance or if it was simply opportunistic.

He added there was no indication that the attack had anything specifically to do with a series of protests and violence across the Muslim world this week that have been sparked by an anti-Muslim YouTube film.

Harry, who celebrates his 28th birthday today, arrived in Afghanistan last Friday on his second tour of duty in the country.

He has been undergoing training to fly operations in Apache attack helicopters and is expected to start flying missions this week as a co-pilot gunner.

The Taliban have described the prince as "a high value target" , saying they will "make their best efforts to arrest or kill" him.

Camp Bastion is a huge, heavily fortified base in the middle of the desert shared with British, US, Danish, Estonian and Afghan troops.

It is the logistics hub for operations in Helmand province, with supply convoys and armoured patrols regularly leaving its heavily-defended gates to support military forward operating bases and checkpoints.