Afghan Buddhas under barrage of tank shells
KABUL, March 2 (AFP) - Afghanistan's ancient Buddha statues in central Bamiyan province are under a barrage of rocket and tank shells from the ruling Taliban militia, official and opposition sources said Friday.

They said zealous Taliban fighters started attacking the two giant stone Buddhas, dating back almost 2,000 years, with rockets, tank sehlls and even automatic rifles.

"They have started attacking the Buddhas with guns and tank shells -- with whatever arms they are carrying," a militia source said, declining to be named.