Ten years have passed since the Taliban attack against the Spanish Embassy in Kabul, which killed two police officers

Eduardo González On December 11, 2015, exactly ten years ago, the Taliban carried out an attack against a house near the Spanish Embassy in Kabul, killing two Spanish police officers, Jorge García Tudela and Isidro Gabino San Martín Hernández. The attack, which lasted more than twelve hours and was carried out by three Taliban members, took place in an area of Kabul where several diplomatic missions are located. The attack caused extensive material damage, both to the Embassy and the residence of the Spanish ambassador. In addition to the two Spanish officers stationed at the Embassy, the attack claimed the lives of ten Afghans responsible for the building's external security. The two deceased police officers were awarded the Gold Cross of Police Merit (the highest distinction in the National Police) by the King during the funeral held four days after the attack. In addition, in January 2016 they were awarded the Grand Cross of the Royal Order of Civil Recognition for Victims of Terrorism, and in February 2016 they were posthumously promoted: Sub-Inspector Jorge García Tudela to the rank of Police Inspector and Officer Isidro Gabino San Martín to the rank of Officer. The attack was claimed by the Taliban, who asserted that, although the “Spanish invaders” were among their military “targets,” in this case the target was not the Embassy, but a building used by “Americans and British” to exchange intelligence. The attack highlighted the security problems of the Embassy, located in a complex in northern Kabul with unrestricted vehicle access and surrounded by a three-meter-high wall, situated only ten meters from the building and “without any kind of safety distance,” as a police union denounced the day after the attack. “The Embassy is one of the few located outside the so-called Green Zone, the security area of the Afghan capital where vehicle traffic is prohibited and access is controlled by Afghan police officers,” the union added. However, the then Foreign Minister, José Manuel García-Margallo, maintained that the security measures were adequate. As a result, the government decided to rent a a building in the Green Zone was chosen to house the new Spanish diplomatic headquarters. Kabul's Green Zone is a heavily fortified area that also houses the embassies of the United States and the United Kingdom. Furthermore, the Council of Ministers approved an investment of nearly €177,000 in September 2016 to improve the building's security. In November 2016, National Court Judge Santiago Pedraz accepted a lawsuit for manslaughter against the then-ambassador, Emilio Pérez de Agreda, and the embassy's deputy, Oriol Solá Pardel, in connection with the alleged lack of security measures at the embassy. According to the lawsuit, on the morning of December 11, French intelligence services issued a warning about the risk of an attack against the Spanish Embassy, "which should have prompted the implementation of extraordinary security measures and prevented a car bomb from exploding against the embassy walls that afternoon (around 6:00 p.m.)." Spanish.” However, the National Court Prosecutor's Office informed Judge Pedraz that same month that the attack against the Spanish Embassy in Afghanistan could only be attributed to the terrorists who perpetrated it and, therefore, neither the ambassador nor his deputy should be charged with manslaughter. The judge ultimately dismissed the case in September 2017. In August 2021, following the Taliban's return to power in Afghanistan, Spain was forced to close its embassy in Kabul and relocate its operations to Doha. During the 2021 evacuation, Spain took in more than 3,000 Afghans and cooperated in the evacuation of 2,206 Afghan staff members and their families from the country. To date, no United Nations member state has recognized the current Taliban government.

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