Weekend attack targets Christians in Kabul

A weekend attack on a guesthouse in Kabul used by a Western organization struck also at the heart of the fragile Afghan Christian community.

South African Werner Groenewald, 46, his son Jean-Pierre, 17, and daughter Rode, 15, were killed in Saturday’s attack on the compound of Partnership in Academics and Development (PAD), a nongovernmental organization based in California.

Also killed were two Afghans meeting with others in the PAD compound when Taliban fighters—including at least one wearing an explosive-packed vest—stormed the premises. Explosions and gunfire erupted for three hours as an Afghan commando unit fought the Taliban militants.

Groenewald and his wife Hannelie have worked in Kabul for 12 years. Hannelie, a physician at a hospital in the Afghan capital, was working at the time of the attack.

“Their house was burned down,” said Hannelie’s sister, Riana du Plessis, speaking to Agence France-Presse from South Africa. “Hannelie went back there this morning to try to recover some of their goods, but there was nothing to recover. She lost everything—her children, her husband, her cats, her dogs.”

On Twitter, Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid claimed the compound belonged to “a secret Christian missionary group” and claimed responsibility for the attack. “A spate of deadly martyrdom attacks have rocked important enemy targets in recent days,” he boasted.

The attack is the second this year on a compound also used for Christian services, and it also took place in Karte Seh, a middle-class enclave of Kabul where many Western-based NGOs are located. For years, it has been a safe part of the city. The attack came at the end of a week of stepped-up attacks against Westerners, as a suicide bomber killed two British embassy employees and another attack took place at the guesthouse of U.S. logistics contractor Aecom Technology. Kabul’s police chief, Gen. Mohammed Zahir, on Sunday resigned amid the rising insecurity, as Taliban forces take advantage of the U.S. departure scheduled to accelerate this month.

PAD is an education charity working in Afghanistan, work that brings it in contact with both Muslims and Christians. At least three Afghans were injured in the attack, including the leader of a group meeting there.

Groenewald was a highly regarded mentor to expats and Afghans alike, and his death was described as “a huge blow.” Before moving to Afghanistan, Groenewald served as a pastor at Moreleta Park Dutch Reformed Church in Pretoria East. “We are in shock,” Willem Badenhorst, the church’s pastor, told the Mail & Guardian. “It is a very, very difficult time for us and the congregation.”

Before joining PAD, which supports Seeds of Hope and other schools in Kabul,

Groenewald worked for the Global Hope Network International, training local NGO workers. One blogger who knew Groenewald recalled a meeting during which he spoke a month ago: “In Werner’s last message to the international group of co-workers he spoke on ‘counting the cost of following Jesus.’ His words will remain in our hearts forever as he closed the session with these words: ‘We only die once, so it might as well be for Jesus.’”

This article has been modified to reflect security concerns for those in the attack.