British staff withdrawn from Afghan government after shootings in interior ministry Afghan officials first suggested the officers had been killed by a fellow foreigner, though Western military officials said initial reports indicated the killer was Afghan. Gen John Allen, commander of Nato's coalition in Afghanistan, said: "I condemn today's attack at the Afghan Ministry of Interior that killed two of our coalition officers, and my thoughts and prayers are with the families and loved ones of the brave individuals lost today." We are investigating the crime and will pursue all leads to find the person responsible for this attack. The perpetrator of this attack is a coward whose actions will not go unanswered. He continued: "For obvious force protection reasons, I have also taken immediate measures to recall all other [Nato coalition] personnel working in ministries in and around Kabul." The ministry was cordoned off after the shootings on Saturday afternoon and officials said the grounds were being searched. The Taliban have tried to capitalise on nationwide anger over the desecration of the Koran and have called on Afghan police and soldiers to attack their Nato counterparts. On Thursday, an Afghan soldier apparently joined protesters attacking a US base in eastern Afghanistan and shot dead two Americans before fleeing. Military advisers work closely with the Afghan forces as they try to build and train them to assume responsibility for securing the country by the end of 2014, as Nato forces withdraw. Any lengthy withdrawal of advisers would risk significantly undermining the plan. Profuse apologies from Gen Allen and from Barack Obama have failed to prevent days of protests since the first reports holy texts had been apparently inadvertently been incinerated. A crowd of around 1,000 protesters gathered in the northern province of Kunduz and attacked a United Nations office, prompting police to open fire. Local hospital officials said four protesters had been shot dead in the clash and up to 50 wounded. A total of around 30 people are believed to have died since the protests began on Tuesday.