Chinese workers in a remote camp of China Railway Shisiju Group Corporation in Afghanistan had safely withdrawn to a major base 40 km away after it was attacked by unknown gunmen on Saturday.

No one was injured in the attack, an official of the company told Xinhua Monday.

According to the official, the militants started the attack against the walled camp in the Duabi area of Badghis province at 9:23 PM local time on Saturday but Afghan policemen guarding the camp fought back.

After an intense gunfight lasting around 90 minutes, both two sides stopped firing, but the gunmen refused to retreat.

At around 11:20 PM, the militants fled as reinforcements from a nearby police station arrived at the site.

When the clash occurred, around 30 Chinese workers, building a local road, were stationed in the camp which is surrounded by thorny wire netting and trenches.

No details as to the perpetrators of the attack or their motivation are available at present.

After receiving aid-seeking information from the camp during the conflict, the Chinese embassy in Afghanistan immediately contacted NATO peace-keeping troops in the area, who agreed to send NATO helicopters to the site if needed.

The embassy also urgently met with officials of the Afghan Foreign Ministry, asking the Afghan government to ensure the safety of the attacked Chinese workers and to discover who was behind the assault.

This is the most severe attack against Chinese companies in Afghanistan since June, 2004.

(Xinhua News Agency December 5, 2006)