The U.S. consulate in

Herat Herāt (; Persian: ) is an oasis city and the third-largest city of Afghanistan. In 2020, it had an estimated population of 574,276, and serves as the capital of Herat Province, situated south of the Paropamisus Mountains (''Selseleh-ye Saf ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bord ...

was attacked on September 13, 2013 by a group of

Taliban The Taliban (; ps, طالبان, ṭālibān, lit=students or 'seekers'), which also refers to itself by its state name, the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan, is a Deobandi Islamic fundamentalist, militant Islamist, jihadist, and Pas ...

militants. Reports indicated that the assault began at 5:30 am on the front gate of the consulate. A large truck drove up to the consulate's primary vehicle entry point and detonated a massive improvised explosive charge, causing extensive damage. A minivan carrying an assault team armed with assault rifles and

rocket-propelled grenade A rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) is a shoulder-fired missile weapon that launches rockets equipped with an explosive warhead. Most RPGs can be carried by an individual soldier, and are frequently used as anti-tank weapons. These warheads are ...

s arrived and opened fire, moving into the consulate compound. Then, the driver of the minivan ignited a bomb inside the minivan, which exploded a short time afterwards. Eight Afghan members of the consulate's guard force and one Afghan police officer were killed. An unknown number of bystanders were wounded. A gun battle ensued, and all seven attackers were killed. No Americans were killed or seriously injured. The

U.S. Department of State The United States Department of State (DOS), or State Department, is an executive department of the U.S. federal government responsible for the country's foreign policy and relations. Equivalent to the ministry of foreign affairs of other natio ...

awarded Heroism Awards to several of the consulate's defenders. The Taliban took credit for the attack in an emailed statement. In a press release, the

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmonizi ...

condemned the attack "in the strongest terms."

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Herat attack 2013 murders in Afghanistan Mass murder in 2013 Mass shootings in Afghanistan Car and truck bombings in Afghanistan US consulate in Herat Herat US consulate Islamic terrorist incidents in 2013 US consulate in Herat History of Herat September 2013 events in Afghanistan Afghanistan–United States relations Attacks in Afghanistan in 2013

See also

References