American soldier is shot dead by guard in Kabul

KABUL, Afghanistan — A U.S. service member was killed and another wounded when an Afghan commando opened fire on them on Saturday in Kabul, Afghan and U.S. officials said.

It was the second such attack in less than two weeks.

On Oct. 22, an Afghan commando opened fire on members of the U.S.-led NATO coalition in the western province of Herat, killing one and wounding two.

“Initial reports indicate the attacker was a member of the Afghan National Defense and Security Forces,” said Debra Richardson, a NATO spokeswoman, in Kabul, the capital.

“The attacker was immediately killed by other Afghan forces.”

The NATO statement did not release the identities or ranks of the service members, or the location of the attack.

But U.S. officials suggested it had occurred at a U.S. special operations forces hub in Kabul that is used as a staging base for missions around the capital and in neighboring provinces.

So-called insider attacks have long been a problem for coalition forces in Afghanistan. At their peak in 2012, 61 coalition soldiers were killed by such attacks.

The latest attack came as the U.S. military has retreated to a more cautious position following a widespread rumor about the killing of the powerful police chief of Kandahar province, which has created mistrust with Afghan allies.

On Oct. 18, the chief, Gen. Abdul Raziq, was shot dead by a teenage Taliban infiltrator as he was walking out of a meeting with the top American and NATO commander, Gen. Austin S. Miller.

Miller, who was standing steps away, survived a second round fired in the direction of the other dignitaries.

A guard at the scene, who U.S. officials said they believed could have been a second infiltrator, shouted that the Americans had shot the Afghan general.

It led to tensions with Afghan forces that cast a cloud over the relationship. Afghan and American forces clashed as the U.S. convoy was leaving the compound, with U.S. forces shooting one Afghan guard dead.

The U.S. military has struggled to contain the disinformation, and senior Afghan officials have tried to quash the rumor. The concern peaked after an Afghan commando opened fire on coalition forces on Oct. 22 in the west of the country following what Afghan officials had been was a verbal clash over the killing of Raziq.