Humayoon Rasaw
Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty
August 20, 2019
The Afghan ambassador to Spain has been mugged in Barcelona, police and diplomatic sources say, the latest in a string of high-profile robberies in Spain’s northeastern Mediterranean port.
The assailants attacked Humayoon Rasaw on a street in the center of the city on August 18, throwing him to the ground to steal his watch, a police spokeswoman said.
Rasaw, who was in Barcelona for celebrations marking Afghanistan’s national day, suffered a leg injury but “is fine,” an Afghan Embassy source said in Madrid.
Rasaw’s watch was worth 17,000 euros ($18,850), Spanish newspaper El Periodico reported.
Rasaw’s mugging comes as Barcelona, one of Europe’s most visited cities, has seen a sharp rise in crime, including several involving foreigners that have made global headlines.
In late June, Hyewon Kim, a South Korean woman who was part of an official government delegation, died after her purse was snatched, when she fell and seriously injured her head.
Earlier this month a Chinese man died in a fight outside a Barcelona nightclub.
The city of 1.6 million, Spain’s second-largest, has seen eight murders since July, an unusually high number in Spain, which has one of the lowest crime rates in Europe.
Robberies, especially those targeting tourists, have also risen.
Based on reporting by AFP and El Periodico