Afghan Panetta 'attacker' was an 'interpreter for senior British officers' "I have absolutely no reason to believe that this was directed at me," he said, but added: "This is a war area and we're going to get these kind of incidents." But Lt Gen Curtis Scaparotti, the deputy commander of American forces in Afghanistan, admitted that the translator had intended to carry out an attack after he managed to break through security cordon and get his stolen truck on the runway. He also disclosed that the Afghan had a container filled with fuel that was ignited inside the vehicle as he drove towards the US Marine delegation waiting on the tarmac for Mr Panetta's plane as it came into land. "There was a puff of smoke and he came out engulfed in flames," Scaparotti said. "My personal opinion, yes, he had an intent to do harm," Scaparotti said. No one in Panetta's party was hurt. The defence secretary was told about the incident after he got off the aircraft. The incident will also cause embarrassment for British authorities as the RAF Regiment is responsible for protecting the base alongside US and Tongan troops. "Clearly there will be an investigation into what went wrong and why an interpreter employed by us carried out this act," said a Ministry of Defence official. We do have a very thorough vetting process but this is something we might have to revisit. The interpreter hijacked a pick-up truck from a soldier and drove it at a group of US Marines on the airfield tarmac, before it burst into flames and crashed after the driver was overcome by fumes. A British soldier who suffered minor injuries after the Afghan ran into him on his way to the runway is recovering in hospital. A Nato spokesman said: "We are currently investigating to determine more facts. At no point was the secretary or anyone on the aircraft in any danger from this incident. The incident is likely to heighten concerns about a surge in attacks on Western troops carried out by Afghans.