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Afghan soldier opens fire at British-run Qargha military academy near Kabul Afghan soldier kills US general in attack on military academy outside Kabul
(about 4 hours later)
An Afghan soldier opened fire at a British-run military academy outside Kabul on Tuesday, injuring Afghan and Nato troops. An Afghan solider opened fire at a British-run military academy outside Kabul on Tuesday, killing a US major general and wounding at least 15 other troops including a German brigadier general.
The number of people injured in the attack at the Qargha academy was not immediately known, but the Ministry of Defence in London said it was investigating. The US two-star general, whose identity was not immediately released, became the highest-ranking American officer killed in nearly 13 years of war in Afghanistan.
"We are aware of reports of an incident at Qargha. The incident is under investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time," a spokesman said. Early reports of the incident were fragmentary on Tuesday. A terse and initially inaccurate statement from Nato's command in Afghanistan, known as the International Security Assistance Force or Isaf, said that an "incident" at the Qargha academy, also known the Marshal Fahim National Defense University, killed an Isaf service member.
Afghan defence ministry spokesperson Zahir Azami said that a soldier wearing an Afghan national army uniform opened fire on a group of international and Afghan soldiers, killing one and wounding and unspecified number of others. A US official told the Associated Press that "about a dozen" American troops were wounded.
The New York Times first identified the rank of the dead officer.
Germany's military said 15 Nato soldiers were wounded, in an assault launched "probably by internal attackers." The wounded included a German brigadier general, who the German military said was receiving medical treatment and was "not in a life-threatening condition."
The Ministry of Defence in London said it was investigating. "We are aware of reports of an incident at Qargha. The incident is under investigation and it would be inappropriate to comment further at this time," a spokesman said.
General Mohammed Afzal Aman, the chief-of-staff for operations at the Afghan defence ministry, said it was also investigating the reports.General Mohammed Afzal Aman, the chief-of-staff for operations at the Afghan defence ministry, said it was also investigating the reports.
"We are investigating, but it appears that an Afghan army officer opened fire. Three of our officers have been injured, some [Nato] troops have also suffered casualties.""We are investigating, but it appears that an Afghan army officer opened fire. Three of our officers have been injured, some [Nato] troops have also suffered casualties."
Unconfirmed reports suggested an argument had broken out at the academy among a group of Afghan soldiers, including the one who opened fire. The killing, known in Pentagon and Isaf parlance as a "green on blue" - for a sponsored force turning on its mentor - represents a return to a vexing and wrenching problem faced by international for forces have confronted in recent years.
By 2012, assaults from Afghan forces had become amongst the greatest dangers to US and allied forces in Afghanistan, rivaling homemade bombs, and military leaders said they were unsure about what was driving the attacks.
Better screening and more thorough monitoring of Afghan recruits has typically been cited as a cause for a sharp drop in such attacks in 2013 and 2014. The bloody day in Kabul is the first such attack in months, and it occurs amidst persistent uncertainty surrounding an Afghan presidential election that will determine the future of the US and allied troop presence after this year.
The officers' training academy, dubbed "Sandhurst in the sand", took its first cadets last October and will be the only remaining British military presence in the country after operations end this year.The officers' training academy, dubbed "Sandhurst in the sand", took its first cadets last October and will be the only remaining British military presence in the country after operations end this year.
Incidents in which Afghan forces turn their guns on their allies have killed scores of Nato troops in recent years, breeding deep mistrust and forcing joint patrols to be monitored by so-called "guardian angels" to provide protection. Agencies in Kabul and London contributed to this report
"We can confirm that an incident occurred involving local Afghan and Isaf troops at Camp Qargha," Nato's International Security Assistance Force said in a statement.
"The camp, also known as the Kabul ANA Officer Academy, is an Afghan National Security Forces facility. We are in the process of assessing the situation."