Second Spanish Police Officer Dies After Kabul Embassy District Attack

The second Spanish police officer has died due to the terror attack that recently occurred near Spain’s embassy in Kabul, Afghanistan, the Spanish Interior Ministry said Saturday.

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – On Friday, a car bomb detonated in Kabul's Sherpor area, the location of several embassies and government buildings, close to the Spanish diplomatic mission, killing a Spanish policeman. The blast was followed by heavy gunfire.

"This is the second victim of the attack. All the embassy staff has been evacuated," the ministry said in a statement.

Commenting on the tragedy, Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy said Friday the explosion had not been directed against the embassy itself, but a nearby guest house.

The comment was dubbed by the Taliban militant group that claimed responsibility for the targeted attack.

Afghanistan has long been in political and social turmoil, with the armed Taliban movement redoubling their insurgency across the country and the violent extremist Islamic State taking advantage of the instability to gain a foothold in the country.

The US-led NATO mission formally ended its International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) combat operations in Afghanistan on December 31, 2014, transitioning to a non-combat mission in the country.