A New Zealand soldier was shot in the foot by a member of the allied Afghan National Security Forces who was subsequently killed in Afghanistan yesterday.
The New Zealand Defence Force said the insider attack occurred about 5.40pm yesterday (New Zealand Time) in Qargha, an area dominated by a large lake and reservoir about 9km west of Kabul.
The soldier had been at a meeting at an Afghan National Army facility with Australian soldiers prior to the incident.
One of the Australian soldiers received a minor wound and another returned fire, killing the attacker, the NZDF said.
Afghan Defence Ministry spokesman Dawlat Waziri told the Los Angeles Times the attack occurred after an argument between an Afghan and a foreign soldier.
A spokeswoman for the NATO-led coalition told the newspaper international troops were attacked by a man in an Afghan uniform. The reason for the attack, including whether it was ideologically motivated or the result of a personal dispute, was under investigation, she said.
The NZDF said the soldier was treated at the scene before being medevaced to Craig Hospital at Bagram Air Force Base, where he received further medical treatment. He was in good spirits and had been in contact with family in New Zealand.
All other New Zealand personnel in the area were safe and accounted, the NZDF said.
The New Zealand Provincial Reconstruction Team, which made up the majority of New Zealanders serving in Afghanistan, withdrew from their base in Bamiyan province earlier this year.
This attack is the latest in a series by Afghan forces against coalition troops, sparking fears about the stability of the country as the remainder of the international forces prepare to withdraw next year.
The Labour Party's defence spokesman, Phil Goff, said the attack highlighted the growing risks of News Zealand's involvement in what had become a civil war.
"The war in Afghanistan today is predominantly a fight between the majority Pashtun Taleban and the Karzai regime, rather than a war against al Qaeda-led international terrorism.
"When the Afghan National Army recruits, it has no idea where the real sympathies of a recruit lie. Increasingly with the withdrawal of US-led forces from Afghanistan planned for next year, there will be more and more people who swing their allegiance to the side that seems most likely to win.''
He said insider fire had become an increasing problem for allied forces training the Afghan National Army (ANA), with recruits turning their weapons on those training them.
"It may be the result of a personal slight in some instances. More often it will be Taleban sympathisers infiltrated into the ANA.''
