Three tourists and an Afghan shot dead during attack in Afghanistan | Afghanistan

Three foreign tourists and one Afghan national were killed in a shooting in Bamyan province in central Afghanistan.

Four suspects were arrested at the scene in Bamiyan, a major tourist destination, and authorities said an investigation was underway. No one immediately claimed responsibility for the late-night attack.

Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qaani told AFP that “one Afghan national and three foreigners were killed” in the shooting in the city of Bamiyan on Friday night.

It added that four foreigners and three Afghans were injured, but did not specify the nationalities of the foreign victims.

“Continuous gunshots were heard and the city streets leading to the scene were immediately sealed off by security forces,” a local resident said on condition of anonymity.

Mountainous Bamiyan is home to a UNESCO World Heritage Site and the ruins of two giant Buddha statues that were blown up by the Taliban during their previous rule in 2001.

Since taking control of Afghanistan in 2021, the Taliban have vowed to restore security, encourage a small but growing influx of tourists into the country and sell tickets to access Buddhist statues. .

Friday’s attack was one of the most serious targeting foreigners since foreign troops withdrew and the Taliban took power.

The Taliban government “strongly condemns this crime, expresses its deep feelings to the families of the victims, and assures that all perpetrators are found and punished,” Qaani said in a statement.

Blame is likely to fall on the Taliban’s main rival, the Islamic State affiliate in Afghanistan. IS militants have attacked schools, hospitals, mosques and minority Shiite areas across the country.