One Slovak soldier was killed at the Kandahar Airfield in Afghanistan, with another two Slovaks suffering serious injuries and four others sustaining light injuries, Defence Minister Martin Glváč confirmed to the press on July 9. The injured soldiers’ conditions have stabilised, the minister said, as reported by the TASR newswire.
The incident took place at about 12:15 local time (9:15 CET). An Afghan citizen was shooting at soldiers during training, allegedly from a security tower.
The shooter was taken into custody after the incident and was questioned. Spokesperson for the Kandahar city government Javid Faisal added that the preliminary investigation indicates that the shooting was an “accident” rather than a so-called insider attack, as reported by the AP newswire.
Yet, Glváč told the press that the incident was definitely a terrorist attack, the SITA newswire wrote.
After the incident the Slovak troops in Kandahar implemented several measures, including setting up teams to offer help to soldiers who were present during the incident, as well as those who are at the mission but did not attend the morning training, Miroslav Kocian, deputy head of the Slovak General Staff, told the media. He added that similar teams were also established in Slovakia to offer help to the families of the soldiers.
The families of the victims will also receive financial compensation, Glváč said.
Slovak Prime Minister Robert Fico and President Ivan Gašparovič, as well as deputy president of the European Commission, Antonio Tajani, and US Ambassador to Slovakia Theodore Sedgwick sent their condolences to the family of the deceased soldier.
Fico added that a delegation of ministers will travel to Kandahar to visit the soldiers and learn more about the incident, SITA reported on July 9.
Source: TASR, SITA, AP
Compiled by Spectator staff from press reports
The Slovak Spectator cannot vouch for the accuracy of the information presented in its Flash News postings.
