BAGRAM, Jan 16: Three US soldiers were wounded in Afghanistan in two incidents and one of the men was in critical but stable condition, the US military said on Thursday.

In a statement issued from Bagram air base, just north of Kabul, US forces also said B-52 heavy bombers were called in to provide close air support for a forward base in Asadabad, a town in the eastern province of Kunar.

It was not immediately clear if the B-52s had dropped any bombs.

Two special forces soldiers were injured at a place about 50kms northeast of the eastern city of Jalalabad on Wednesday morning when an explosive device went off under their vehicle.

A second device also exploded, damaging another vehicle but causing no injuries, the statement said.

The two soldiers were treated at Bagram and later released.

A third soldier was shot in the abdomen on Wednesday at the airfield in Kandahar, although the incident was “not due to hostile fire” and was under investigation.

The statement said the soldier underwent surgery at Kandahar before being taken to Bagram, where his condition was described as “critical but stable”. He is expected to be flown to Germany for treatment on Friday.

The U.S. military also said a forward base in Asadabad, not far from the Pakistan border, came under rocket attack early on Thursday and US air support had been called in.

“B-52 bombers provided coverage for the firebase,” the military said. It was not clear if “coverage” meant bombs were dropped or whether the huge warplanes were called in as a deterrent.

The use of the heavy bombers for air support in Afghanistan is relatively rare, although B-52s did drop bombs last month to break up fighting between warlords.—Reuters