Top hotel in Kabul attacked by suicide bombers - police source

[Bosonic]

Source: Reuters

(Reuters) - Two suicide bombers attacked a major hotel frequented by Westerners in Afghanistan's capital of Kabul late Tuesday, a police official said, and gunfire was heard for several minutes afterwards.

"A gun fight is still going on," the police official, who asked not to be named, told Reuters. There were no immediate reports of casualties.

The Intercontinental Hotel is situated in the western part of Kabul and is one of two top hotels used by foreigners.


Read more: http://uk.reuters.com/article/2011/06/28/uk-afghanistan-violence-idUKTRE75R5WG20110628

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Update:

Attack on Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, at least 10 killed: Reports

Kabul: The Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul has come under a commando style attack, with explosions and gunfire being heard from the building, according to police sources.

Afghanistan news channel Tolo TV is reporting that six suicide bombers are inside the building, and at least 10 people have been killed.

The hotel is said to be popular with foreigners.

More details are awaited.

More: http://www.ndtv.com/article/world/attack-on-intercontinental-hotel-in-kabul-at-least-10-killed-reports-115467

[xchrom]

1. recommend

[gauguin57]

2. Taliban is claiming responsibility, per HuffPost

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/28/intercontinental-hotel-attack-kabul_n_886224.html

[valerief]

3. So does that mean we'll declare war on…nevermind. nt

[Purveyor]

4. ABC Radio reporting that there are still 6 bombers inside the hotel. eom

[Little Star]

5. Looks like a nice hotel. Here is a link:

http://www.intercontinentalkabul.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=5&Itemid=18

[Bosonic]

6. I think the webmaster might need to update the site

It sounds like a Mumbai-style attack, it's still apparently ongoing, and at least 3 big explosions have been reported, one of those a car bomb out front of the hotel.

[Blue_Tires]

7. I wonder if anyone noteworthy was staying there at the time?

[Bosonic]

8. Afghan officials

Afghan officials, including provincial governors, were staying at the hotel because of a conference beginning tomorrow.

...

The attack occurred the day before a conference was scheduled in Kabul to discuss plans for Afghan security forces to take the lead for securing an increasing number of areas of the country between now and 2014 when international forces are expected to move out of combat roles.


More: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2009228/Afghan-hotel-horror-suicide-bombers-attack-Kabul-Intercontinental.html

[Springer9]

9. There goes the theory that the Tollybon will just wait

for us to leave before attacking the rest of the country.

Might as well get out now while the gettin' is good.

[Little Star]

10. Here is a more recent updated article on this event...

KLTV
NATO helicopters kill gunmen at Kabul hotel siege

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) - Two NATO helicopters fired rockets that killed three gunmen on the rooftop of a besieged Kabul hotel early Wednesday after Afghan police battled insurgents who attacked with suicide bombers, machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades.

The NATO attack appeared to have ended the standoff that lasted more than four hours. The number of casualties was not immediately clear. Afghan officials said there had been four suicide bombers and four gunmen, who all appeared to have been killed. Associated Press reporters on the scene saw at least five bodies removed from the hotel, but could not say whether they were the attackers or their victims.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack.

Jason Waggoner, a spokesman for the U.S.-led coalition fighting in Afghanistan, said the helicopters fired early Wednesday morning on the roof where militants had taken up positions. He said they killed three gunmen and that Afghan security forces clearing the Inter-Continental hotel worked their way up to the roof and engaged the remaining insurgents.


http://www.kltv.com/story/14987592/afghan-nato-forces-capture-militant-leader

[oberliner]

11. Taliban Suicide Raid on Luxury Kabul Hotel Kills 12 People

Source: Bloomberg

Taliban guerrillas armed with automatic weapons and explosives stormed the Hotel Inter- Continental in Kabul last night, triggering a five-hour gun battle with Afghan troops and police that left 12 people dead.

Eight militants entered the hotel compound at about 10 p.m. and began fighting with guards, Interior Ministry spokesman Sediq Sediqqi said in a phone interview today in the Afghan capital. Security forces were sent to the hotel and two policemen were killed, he said. The city’s police chief, Ayub Salangi, said 10 civilians, most of them hotel staff, died in the siege.

Among guests at the hotel were governors and police chiefs of eight provinces who had gathered in Kabul to discuss plans for Afghan forces to take a greater role in providing security as U.S.-led NATO troops wind down their combat role by the end of 2014. None were hurt in the raid.

A “big group” of Taliban gunmen attacked the hotel, said Zabihullah Mujahed, a spokesman for the Taliban movement, who claimed that 50 people were killed or wounded, among them foreigners. The attack was timed for a meeting of U.S., Afghan and Pakistani officials with the intent of killing them, he said.

Read more: http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-06-29/taliban-suicide-raid-on-luxury-kabul-hotel-kills-12-people.html

[Tunkamerica]

12. It amazes me that there is a "Luxury Kabul Hotel"

somebody tipped them off

[krispos42]

13. Relative luxury, maybe

Not only running water, but running HOT water!

[Angleae]

14. It probably depends on the definition of "luxury"

[oberliner]

15. Here is a link to the hotel website

About Us

The Hotel Inter-Continental Kabul, your destination in Kabul. Hotel Inter-Continental Kabul was inaugurated officially on September 09th 1969. The hotel is situated on a hill top; with eye-catching vies of Kabul city, Bagh-e- bala “Amir abdurahman’s summer palace” and the Hindo Kush mountain range.

http://www.intercontinentalkabul.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&layout=blog&id=5&Itemid=18

[Tunkamerica]

16. So according to the website

the most expensive room (the royal suite) is 0.47 dollars a night. OR it might be 470 dollars a night. AFA refers to Old Afghanis but if they mean new Afghanis (AFN) it's x1000.