Afghanistan: British police officer killed in Taliban suicide bomb attack

A car bomb in Afghanistan has killed a man believed to be a British national working with the European Police force, which has been confirmed by Foreign Office.

Foreign Secretary Philip Hammond and the British Embassy in Kabul have confirmed that the dead man was a British security contractor, and that his next of kin had been informed.

Mr Hammond described the attack as "cowardly".

"This is the second attack in a matter of days for which the Taliban have claimed responsibility and I strongly condemn their cowardly actions," said Mr Hammond.

"I can confirm that a British security contractor is among those killed in the attack. His family has been informed and my thoughts are with them at this incredibly difficult time. Consular staff stand ready to provide support," he added.

Two women also died in the suicide attack on Sunday (17 May), with another 18 people wounded when an attacker drove a car filled with explosives into a foreign convoy in Kabul.

The convoy targeted included two vehicles of the European Union Police Mission in Afghanistan (EUPOL), during the morning rush hour near Kabul airport.

"A suicide bomber detonated his Toyota sedan targeting a foreign forces convoy near Kabul airport today at 9am,' Kabul police spokesman Ebadullah Karimi told AFP.

"The target of the attacker was the foreign forces convoy. So far we have two women dead, 18 others wounded, all of them civilians,' he said, adding that three children were among those wounded.

The British man had been travelling with officers from European Union Police Mission in Afghanistan (EUPOL), an organisation that assists in reforming Afghanistan's civilian police and law enforcement services.

Three others inside the car, who all work for EUPOL, were injured in the blast and suffered injuries which are not believed to be life-threatening, said a EUPOL spokesperson.

Khalilullah Hodkhil, the deputy head of Wazir Akbar Khan hospital, said the bodies of two young women had been taken to the medical centre, along with others who were injured.

"All of them are civilians, including women and children," he said. "They are under treatment and their wounds are not life-threatening."

Taliban insurgents have claimed responsibility for the car bomb attack. They have recently increased attacks on foreign targets after launching their spring offensive in April.

"A suicide attack carried out on foreign forces near the gate of Kabul airport," spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said on Twitter.

The Taliban have waged a 13-year war to topple the US-backed government in Afghanistan. Since the beginning of 2015, civilian casualties from attacks increased by 16% over the same period last year, according to a statement by the United Nations Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA).