Three foreign nationals abducted and killed in Kabul, Afghan police say

Three foreign nationals working for a French company in Afghanistan were kidnapped and later murdered in Kabul, police said.

The three were from India, Malaysia and Macedonia and were working for Sodexo, an international food services company based in France, Reuters reported Kabul police as saying on Thursday, August 2. The men’s identities have not been released.

Police say they were abducted at gunpoint and later found dead in Kabul’s Mosai district. Tolo news reported they were taken in the morning after leaving their office in PD9.

They were later found shot inside a car, AFP reported interior ministry spokesperson Bahar Mehr as saying.

“At this stage we think it is a terrorist incident,” police spokesperson Hashmat Stanikzai said.

It was unclear who is responsible for the kidnapping.

Sodexo confirmed in a statement to The Defense Post that three of their employees were killed.

“We are deeply saddened and shocked to learn of the tragic loss of three of our team members in Kabul, Afghanistan today. On behalf of the Sodexo community, I want to say that our hearts are with their families, friends and colleagues,” Sodexo CEO Denis Machuel said.

“Sodexo is working closely with the authorities in Kabul and will share further information when available. We can confirm that the employees were of Malaysian, Indian and Macedonian nationalities. We are putting in place a psychological support line for our local employees.”

At least four foreign nationals have been kidnapped in the Afghan capital since July 2016 and over 100 in Afghanistan since 2001, according to the U.K. Foreign Office.

Last May, a German aid worker was killed and Finnish national kidnapped from a house in Kabul. An Afghan guard was killed in the incident. All three were working for a Swedish charity called Operation Mercy.

This is a developing story and will be updated.