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Afghanistan: German consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif attacked | Afghanistan: German consulate in Mazar-e-Sharif attacked |
(35 minutes later) | |
A suicide bomber has rammed a truck into the German consulate in the Afghan city of Mazar-e-Sharif, killing at least two people, officials say. | |
Reports described a huge blast at the diplomatic mission followed by gunfire. | |
A hospital official said more than 80 people were hurt in the attack, which happened around 23:00 (18:30 GMT). | |
The Taliban says it carried out the attack in response to coalition air strikes earlier this month in Kunduz which killed civilians. | |
Nato is investigating the incident, which happened when Afghan troops surrounded by Taliban militants called in air support. Thirty civilians died in the operation, local officials said. | |
The German diplomatic mission is in a walled compound in the centre of Mazar-e-Sharif, the capital of Balkh province. | |
Germany has nearly 1,000 troops in Afghanistan, most in Balkh province. | |
"The suicide attacker rammed his explosives-laden car into the wall of [the] German consulate," local police chief Sayed Kamal Sadat told AFP. | |
Balkh province head of security Abdul Raziq Qaderi told AP police had surrounded the area and forces were inside the compound. | Balkh province head of security Abdul Raziq Qaderi told AP police had surrounded the area and forces were inside the compound. |