KABUL – The bodies of three Spanish tourists and three Afghans shot dead while on a tour in Afghanistan were transported to Kabul, along with eight wounded, the Taliban government said on Saturday.

The group was fired on while walking through a market in the mountainous city of Bamiyan in central Afghanistan, around 180 kilometers (100 miles) from the capital, on Friday evening.

People and vehicles are seen at a market near the scene of a shooting that left at least six people, including three Spanish tourists, dead the day before in the city of Bamiyan, Bamiyan province, central Afghanistan on May 18, 2024. XINHUA PHOTO

"All dead bodies have been [brought] to Kabul and are in the forensic department, and the wounded are also in Kabul. Both dead and wounded include women," Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani told Agence France-Presse (AFP).

"Among the eight wounded, of whom four are foreigners, only one elderly foreign woman is not in a very stable situation," he said.

Qani also said the death toll had risen to six, including two Afghan civilians and one Taliban member.

Spain's Foreign Ministry announced on Friday that three of the dead were Spanish tourists, adding that at least one other Spaniard was wounded.

Preliminary information provided by hospital sources says the wounded were from Norway, Australia, Lithuania and Spain.

"They were roaming in the bazaar when they were attacked," Qani said.

"Seven suspects have been arrested, of [whom] one is wounded. The investigation is still [ongoing] and the Islamic Emirate is seriously looking into the matter," he added, using the Taliban's preferred name for Afghanistan.

He did not say if there had been multiple shooters.

Fledgling tourism sector

In a post on X, formerly Twitter, Spanish Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez said he was "[o]verwhelmed by the news of the murder of Spanish tourists in Afghanistan."

The European Union condemned the attack "in the strongest terms," saying in a statement that its "thoughts are with the families and loved ones of the victims who lost their lives and those injured in the attack."

The Taliban government, which retook power in August 2021 after a decadelong insurgency against foreign forces, is yet to be officially recognized by any government.

It has, however, supported a fledgling tourism sector, with more than 5,000 foreign tourists visiting Afghanistan in 2023, official figures show.

Tourists go there without consular support, after most embassies were evacuated, and many Western nations advise against all travel to the country, warning of kidnapping and attack risks.

Besides security concerns, the country has limited road infrastructure and a dilapidated health service.

Bamiyan is Afghanistan's top tourist destination, known for turquoise lakes and striking mountains, and once home to the giant Buddha statues that were blown up by the Taliban in 2001 during their previous rule.

The number of bombings and suicide attacks in Afghanistan has reduced dramatically since the Taliban authorities retook power, and deadly attacks on foreigners are rare.

However, some armed groups, including the Islamic State, remain a threat.

The jihadist group has waged a campaign of attacks on foreign interests in a bid to weaken the Taliban government, targeting Pakistani and Russian embassies, as well as Chinese businessmen.

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