Japanese doctor among six killed in an attack in Afghan

Published : 05 Dec 2019, 11:52

Sahos Desk

After being wounded in an attack in eastern Afghanistan, a Japanese surgeon who dedicated his life to improving the lives of Afghans has died, says BBC.

Tetsu Nakamura, 73, was shot by Gunmen while he was riding in a car to track a campaign, officials say.

In the assault that took place in Jalalabad district, five Afghans were also killed.
Dr. Nakamura headed a foundation in Japan focused on improving the country's irrigation.

For his humanitarian work, he was granted honorary citizenship by the Afghan government in October this year.

Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe said he was "shocked" by Dr. Nakamura's death, while Kabul's U.S. ambassador condemned the attack, saying "aid workers are not targets."

Dr. Nakamura was driving on Wednesday morning in a car in Jalalabad city in Nangarhar's eastern province when he was under attack.

Once he died at Jalalabad airport, officials told AFP news agency, he was shot on the right side of his chest and was being moved to a hospital near the capital Kabul.

Attuallah Khogyani, a spokesman for Nangarhar's governor, said his three security guards, a driver and one of his colleagues were also killed.

He was born in Fukuoka, Japan, in 1946.

He moved to Pakistan in 1984, after qualifying as a doctor, to treat patients with leprosy.

He went to Afghanistan two years later, where he opened his first clinic in a remote village in Nangarhar and set up a non-governmental organization called Peace Japan Medical Services (PMS).

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