Save the Children under attack in Afghanistan
Charity suspends Afghanistan operations as gunmen kill three people after storming Jalalabad compound
Afghan forces take up position near the Save the Children charity’s offices in Jalalabad, Afghanistan during an ISIL attack yesterday.
Save the Children suspended operations across Afghanistan yesterday as ISIL terrorised staff trapped inside one of the charity’s offices in an hourslong attack, the latest targeting of a foreign organisation.
Gunmen shot their way into the compound of the British aid group – present in the country for 41 years – in the eastern city of Jalalabad, killing at least three people and wounding 24.
Save the Children, an AFP reporter at the scene and a security source said the attack continued into the early evening, hours after an official claimed it was over.
“In response to this, all of our programmes across Afghanistan have been temporarily suspended and our offices are closed,” the charity said.
After blowing up a car outside Save the Children’s compound in Jalalabad, the attackers used a rocket-propelled grenade to enter the complex, in a raid claimed by ISIL through its propaganda arm, Amaq.
Attaullah Khogyani, a spokesman for the Nangarhar provincial governor, said at least three people – two guards and a civilian – were killed and 24 wounded.
Earlier, he said the attackers were wearing military uniforms.
Up to 50 people were rescued from a basement where they had hidden from attackers, Mr Khogyani said. Mohammad Amin, who was inside the compound when the attackers launched the raid at 9.10am, told AFP that he heard “a big blast”.
“We ran for cover and I saw a gunman hitting the main gate with an RPG (rocket-propelled grenade) to enter the compound. I jumped out of the window.”
Afghan TV news channels showed a thick plume of black smoke rising above the compound and what appeared to be at least one vehicle on fire outside the office.
ISIL has intensified attacks in cities in recent months, targeting mosques and Afghan security forces as it expands beyond its stronghold in the east.
Terrorist groups rarely claim responsibility for attacks on aid workers.
Yesterday’s assault came days after Taliban gunmen stormed the Intercontinental Hotel in the Afghan capital and killed at least 22 people, most of them foreigners.
Gunmen armed with semi-automatic rifles and suicide vests committed that attack, going from room to room searching for foreigners during an ordeal that lasted more than 12 hours.
“Attacks directed at civilians or aid organisations are clear violations of international humanitarian law and may amount to war crimes,” the United Nations’ mission in Afghanistan tweeted.
The assault on Save the Children, which has operated in Afghanistan since 1976, is the latest violence against an international aid organisation in the country, which recorded the second-highest number of attacks against aid workers in 2016.
Only South Sudan was more dangerous, according to UKbased research group Humanitarian Outcomes.
The International Committee of the Red Cross announced in October it would “drastically” reduce its presence in Afghanistan after seven employees were killed in attacks last year.
Nangarhar, a province bordering Pakistan, is a stronghold for ISIL and also has a significant Taliban presence.
US and Afghan forces have been carrying out ground and air operations against ISIL fighters in the province.
While Afghan security forces are conducting most of the fighting against ISIL and Taliban militants, US troops operate alongside them in a training capacity and are frequently on the front lines.
The last major attack in Jalalabad was on December 31, when an explosion at a funeral killed 18 mourners and wounded 13. There was no claim of responsibility.
We ran for cover, and I saw a gunman hitting the main gate with an RPG to enter the compound MOHAMMAD AMIN Witness