Gunmen Attack UN Convoy, Five Afghan Troops Killed

Afghan forces were escorting convoy outside Kabul

A UN convoy was attacked today on the outskirts of the Afghan capital of Kabul, killing five Afghan security forces who were part of an escort force bringing the UN agency’s vehicles through the area. A driver was also reported killed.

Details are still scant, though the UN said none of their people were hurt. The Afghan Interior Ministry issued a statement blaming the Taliban. The Taliban has denied having anything to do with it.

It isn’t necessarily the Taliban, as they have not recently gone after UN forces. ISIS-K, the local ISIS affiliate, has been responsible for a lot of recent attacks in and around Kabul.

The UN issued a statement demanding violence in Afghanistan end, and so long as the government can blame the Taliban for the attack, they can spin this into a condemnation of the Taliban. With the peace process in growing danger, this could be a bad sign.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.