Chinese mine worker killed in IS-claimed attack in Afghanistan

A Chinese mine worker was killed in northern Afghanistan's Takhar province Tuesday in an attack later claimed by the Islamic State group, provincial police said.

The Chinese national, traveling without notifying security officials, was targeted by "unknown armed men," police spokesman Mohammad Akbar Haqqani told AFP. A translator with him was unharmed.

Interior Ministry spokesman Abdul Mateen Qani said the victim owned a mining contract in Afghanistan. The Chinese embassy in Kabul declined to comment.

The attack highlights ongoing security risks even as the Taliban government courts Chinese investment, touting Afghanistan's untapped natural resources as a path to economic recovery.

"Peace and security prevail in Afghanistan," Deputy Foreign Minister Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanekzai said at an event marking 70 years of Sino-Afghan ties on Tuesday, urging Chinese investors to "come and invest with confidence."

Despite improved security since the Taliban's return to power in 2021, the Islamic State group frequently targets government officials, security forces, and foreigners.

In a 2022 IS-claimed attack on a Kabul hotel popular with Chinese nationals, five were wounded.