Foreign Tourists Wounded In Afghanistan Ambush

Three Americans were among those in the convoy when it was attacked in Herat province.
Afghan policemen train at a live firing range in the central province of Bamiyan, which has marketed itself as a tourist destination.
Afghan policemen train at a live firing range in the central province of Bamiyan, which has marketed itself as a tourist destination.
Ahmad Masood / Reuters

KABUL (Reuters) - At least six foreign tourists and their driver were wounded in Afghanistan on Thursday, in an attack by gunmen on their convoy as it passed through western Herat province, government officials said.

The group of at least a dozen travelers included eight British citizens, three Americans, and one German, but the nationalities of the casualties was not clear, said Jilani Farhad, a spokesman for Herat’s governor.

He said security forces had been dispatched to the scene.

The convoy, reportedly escorted by security forces, was on its way from scenic Bamiyan province in central Afghanistan to the city of Herat in the west when it was attacked, Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said.

Both officials described the foreigners as “tourists”.

Afghanistan remains locked in a violent insurgency and Western embassies typically warn their citizens against all travel in the country, citing threats of attack and kidnapping.

Bamiyan, home to Afghanistan’s first national park, is one of the country’s more peaceful areas and attracts some of the few tourists who do visit.

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