Officials said Washington feared that Moscow might cite the project as a source of covert aid to the guerrillas battling Kabul's Marxist Government.

The 1956 seizure followed a series of articles in which Mr. Bourdet attacked the French campaign to destroy the guerrillas battling for Algerian independence and condemned plans to call up 100,000 military reservists.

Police officers said the attack Tuesday night was presumably the work of leftist guerrillas battling the American-backed Government.

Afghanistan's Prime Minister has said he is seeking immediate talks on a political settlement with the guerrillas battling his Government and its Soviet protectors.

Lest the point be lost, he offered the example of the roads into Kabul, dominated by guerrillas battling to overthrow President Najibullah, who tells reporters these days that he is a convert to free enterprise.

Despite months of assurances that their forces were on the wane, the guerrillas and terrorists battling the American-backed enterprise here appear to be growing more violent, more resilient and more sophisticated than ever.

He also criticized the United States and Pakistan for continuing to supply powerful surface-to-surface missiles to the guerrillas battling Soviet and Afghan Government forces.

But the major pipelines running south from the refinery in Bayji and from Kirkuk go through Sunni regions that are strongholds for guerrillas battling the foreign occupation.

Both cities reportedly are surrounded by Islamic guerrillas battling the Communist Government and the Soviet troops who have been sent to support it.

The attack was the latest in a recent pattern of large, well-organized bands of guerrillas battling American forces.