Iraqi Embassy in Kabul attacked by Islamic State
KABUL — The Islamic State group targeted the Iraqi Embassy in Kabul on Monday, with a suicide bomber blowing himself up outside the gates, followed by three gunmen who stormed into the building. The assault set off a four-hour firefight that ended only after Afghan security forces said they had killed all the attackers.
Interior Ministry spokesman Najib Danish said two Afghan employees of the Iraqi Embassy died in the attack. Three police officers were injured, he said.
As the attack unfolded there were conflicting reports of casualties, with a witness saying he saw bodies of at least two police officers lying on the road outside the embassy soon after the attack began.
In its claim of responsibility, the Islamic State group said its fighters had killed seven guards, but the militant group often exaggerates its claims on the number of casualties inflicted.
Danish told the Associated Press that all the embassy staffers were safe but that the building had suffered extensive damage with windows broken and several rooms badly burned.
Afghan President Ashraf Ghani condemned the attack and said it was the government’s responsibility to provide protection to international missions. In Baghdad, Foreign Ministry spokesman Ahmad Jamal also condemned the assault.
The attack began with a big explosion that rocked central Kabul shortly before noon, followed by gunfire that lasted several hours along with several large explosions.
The Afghan Interior Ministry said a suicide bomber first started the attack, blowing himself up at the embassy gate, after which three attackers stormed inside.
While the attack was still under way, the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan claimed responsibility in a statement carried by its affiliated Aamaq news agency.
A police officer in the area, who identified himself only as Abdullah, said the gunfire was initially intense but later became more sporadic. The area was surrounded by armored vehicles and a large contingent of police and Afghan soldiers.
At least one eyewitness, a store owner named Hafizullah — many Afghans use only one name — said he saw the bodies of two policemen on the ground before armored personnel carriers and police arrived to cordon off the area.
More than an hour into the attack, witnesses reported hearing another powerful explosion and said they saw black smoke billowing skyward. It wasn’t immediately clear what had caused the later explosion.
“The explosion was so strong. I was so afraid,” said Maryam, a woman crying near the site of the attack. She said she works at the nearby office of Afghanistan’s National Airline Ariana.
The Iraqi Embassy is located in a part of the city known as Shahr-eNow, which lies outside the “green zone” where most foreign embassies and diplomatic missions are located and which is heavily fortified with a phalanx of guards and giant cement blast walls.
By comparison, the Iraqi Embassy is located on a small street in a neighborhood dominated by markets and businesses.