Raid by Afghan Forces and NATO Ends Attack on Hotel in Kabul

ALISSA J. RUBIN
The New York Times
June 29, 2011

Nine suicide bombers penetrated several rings of security to lay siege to one of the capital’s premier hotels for six hours overnight Tuesday in a complex attack that jolted Afghans’ sense of security and highlighted the weakness of their police forces. At least 21 people were killed: all the attackers, two policemen, nine Afghan civilians, and one foreigner, a Spaniard.

One witness said that the police failed to stop a man who obviously presented a threat: a man carrying weapons, dressed in a police uniform but with a white hat of the kind often favored by religious Afghans and instead urged the witness to move away from the man, calling him a “bomber.” Other witness accounts said that some security officers fled. The siege ended in the morning; at least five of the attackers blew themselves up, and others were shot by Afghan and NATO forces.

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This article was posted: Wednesday, June 29, 2011 at 11:43 am

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