© UnknownMap of Afghanistan
Kabul, Afghanistan - An Afghan employee of the U.S. government opened fire inside a CIA office in Kabul on Sunday evening, killing an American and injuring a second, U.S. and Afghan officials said, in the second major breach of embassy security in two weeks.
The killing adds to a sense of insecurity already heightened by a 20 hour-siege of the embassy district in mid-September, and the assassination a week later of the government's peace envoy, former President Burhanuddin Rabbani.
The CIA compound is one of the most heavily guarded in Kabul, and has been off-limits for almost a decade, since shortly after the Taliban's fall from power in 2001.
It also lies at the heart of the capital's heavily-guarded military, political and diplomatic district, a virtual "green zone" that is almost impossible for ordinary Afghans to enter.
It was not clear if the U.S. citizens were victims of a rogue employee who had been won over to the insurgent cause, or just the escalation of an argument in a city where tensions are high and many people carry guns. There are precedents for both.
The "lone attacker" was killed, and the injured U.S. citizen was taken to a military hospital, U.S. embassy spokesman Gavin Sundwall said on Monday.
Comment: Heretic Productions present: Zen Gardner's "7 Reasons To Brace For Impact"