The government of Eswatini announced that soldiers accidentally shot two U.S. government personnel during an anti-smuggling operation late Friday. The incident occurred in a rural region in the northeast of the country, according to a statement released by Eswatini officials late Monday.
The shooting took place in the kingdom of Eswatini, a nation of approximately 1.3 million people located between South Africa and Mozambique. The country is governed by King Mswati III, who holds supreme political power as the last absolute monarch in Africa.
Eswatini government spokesperson Thabile Mdluli told The Associated Press on Tuesday that the Americans sustained minor injuries and an investigation is underway. Army sources told Swaziland News that the shooting occurred at a military roadblock. According to those sources, soldiers fired on a vehicle that made a U-turn near the roadblock, unaware that it was driven by U.S. personnel and believing the driver was attempting to illegally avoid the checkpoint.
Neither the U.S. State Department nor the Eswatini government has publicly identified the affected personnel or specified their exact roles, though army sources characterized one individual as a diplomat. The U.S. State Department confirmed the personnel are safe and stated it is coordinating with Eswatini authorities on the investigation. Eswatini army spokesperson Sandile Gwebu described the matter as a "diplomatic issue" currently being handled by both nations.
The Eswatini government stated the incident is being treated with "seriousness," but did not provide a specific timeline for the conclusion of the investigation.
--- WHO: Two U.S. government personnel and the Eswatini army. WHAT: Accidental shooting of U.S. government personnel by Eswatini soldiers. WHEN: Friday, March 7 WHERE: northeast Eswatini WHY: Soldiers reportedly believed a vehicle making a U-turn was attempting to evade a military roadblock.