US Closes Embassy in Afghanistan

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) -- The U.S. Embassy in Afghanistan has closed following deadly insurgent attacks on a German Consulate and an American military base.

In a statement late Saturday, the embassy says it will be "closed for routine services" Sunday "as a temporary precautionary measure."

The unusual decision comes after four Americans — two soldiers and two contractors — were killed in a suicide attack Saturday on the Bagram Airfield near the capital, Kabul.

Two days earlier, insurgents attacked the German Consulate in the northern city of Mazar-i-Sharif, killing six people and wounding more than 100.

The U.S. Embassy in Kabul regularly warns Americans against travel to Afghanistan, where a Taliban-led insurgency is in its 16th year.

The insurgency has become more virulent since most international combat troops withdrew in 2014.

(KA)