MAZAR-I-SHARIF – At least four people were killed while another 20 were left injured as a suicide car bomber struck the German consulate in the northern Afghan city of Mazar-i-Sharif, here on Thursday.
The huge explosion, followed by sporadic gunfire smashed windows of nearby shops leaving terrified local residents in despair.
The bombing on Thursday was claimed by the Taliban, which called it a “revenge attack” for a US air strike in the volatile province of Kunduz earlier this month that left up to 32 civilians dead.
The Taliban called it a “revenge attack” for US air strikes in the volatile province of Kunduz earlier this month that left up to 32 civilians dead.
Meanwhile, local police chief Sayed Kamal Sadat told a news agency that the suicide attacker rammed his explosives-laden car into the wall of the German consulate.
The German foreign ministry confirmed the attack had ended and that all German staff from the consulate were unharmed.
“The consulate building has been heavily damaged. It is not yet clear how many Afghan civilians and security personnel died or were injured in the attack,” the ministry said in a statement.
Germany has 938 soldiers stationed in Afghanistan, most of them in Balkh, the province where Mazar-i-Sharif is located, as part of NATO’s Resolute Support mission, Al-Jazeera reported.
