Afghan policeman opens fire on colleagues; 4 dead

Kandahar, February 11

An Afghan official says that a policeman in the southern province of Kandahar has killed four of his colleagues and wounded another seven.

Zia Durrani, spokesman for the provincial police, said today the rogue policeman was shot dead by another officer.

He says the shootings took place in the Zhari district late yesterday.

It is the latest in a string of recent insider attacks in Afghanistan. Last month a rogue cop in Uruzgan province shot dead 10 colleagues.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack. The Taliban consider Kandahar their heartland, along with neighboring Helmand where poppy production accounts for most of the world's heroin.

Insurgents have attacked most districts across Helmand in recent months, in an effort to reclaim and protect smuggling routes for drugs, minerals, arms and men. —AP