Violence on eve of Afghan vote

Taliban insurgents fired rockets in parts of Afghanistan and a huge truck bomb was intercepted on the eve of the first presidential election in the rugged, war-torn land, underlining the risk of sabotage by Islamic radicals.

Despite the scattered violence and the ever-present threat of a major attack, there appeared to be growing optimism that today's landmark poll, which President Hamid Karzai is favourite to win, would go off fairly smoothly.

"Yes, security is a concern," said an elderly man with a trim salt-and-pepper beard as he shopped in a Kabul bazaar. "But this will be a great day. I will vote. I'm optimistic that an elected government can improve people's lives."

One rocket exploded in the air above the main US military compound in Kabul before dawn, damaging vehicles in a car park. In the eastern city of Jalalabad, a rocket ploughed into a house, wounding two young children, officials said.

Six rockets were fired during the night at the home of the governor of Zabul province in the south, but they all missed.

In nearby Kandahar, the Taliban heartland, government troops stopped a tanker full of fuel on the outskirts of the provincial capital and found explosives hidden in it.

"It is obvious that their main goal was to detonate the truck in Kandahar city," army commander Abdul Ghafur told Reuters.

Other officials said if the fuel truck had exploded in the city it would have devastated a large area and caused hundreds of casualties.

Defence Ministry spokesman Gen Zahir Azimy said troops in the east had arrested two men believed to be suicide bombers.

About 18,000 US-led troops, hunting al Qaeda and Taliban leaders, are helping a 42,000-strong Afghan police and military force and 8,000 NATO-led peacekeepers to provide security.

They were on full alert as the nation prepared to vote. A large turnout and victory for the US-backed Karzai would legitimise his rule and mark a turning point for a country shattered by more than a quarter-century of war.

He said on Thursday the vote could not be delayed any more - it would go ahead successfully and reflect the wishes of his 28 million people.

"How long can we wait for the guns to go before we have elections?" Mr Karzai said in a BBC interview. "No election in the world is free of tension. Afghanistan is in a more serious situation because we are emerging out of war."