Panetta Wasn't The Target

Defense officials said the Afghan man who crashed a stolen truck at an airfield yesterday was trying to run down U.S. Marines, the Associated Press reported. The Marines were assembled there waiting for Defense Secretary Leon Panetta's plane to arrive. Since the secretary's trip hadn't been announced in advance, DoD officials don't think the man was targeting Panetta himself. They said Panetta was never in danger. The driver, who was working as an interpreter for U.S. forces, died later in the day after suffering extensive burns. A British soldier was injured when he tried to stop the driver from stealing the truck on the base. The Afghan man hit the British soldier with the truck as he was driving away.