Taliban security forces killed three assailants who stormed a popular hotel in Afghanistan’s capital city Kabul, housing foreigners, especially the Chinese diplomats and travelers. All guests in the hotel have been rescued and no foreign national was killed, the Taliban said in a statement. Only two foreigners received slight injuries after they tried to jump from a window.
The structure is famous as “Kabul Longan Hotel” and located in one of the main commercial areas of Kabul (Shar-e-Now).
Emergency hospital confirmed that three people have been killed and 18 others were wounded in the attack which was also carrying suicide vests and the Taliban fighters were also wounded. There has been no immediate national identification of the victims and of those wounded.
“It was a very loud explosion like dropping bomb from air,” the witness told harici. Sporadic gunfire was heard for several hours. Footage doing rounds in social media showed fire and smoke rising into the air from the hotel building.
Today’s attack is the latest blast in Afghanistan under the Taliban rule which has had a series of attacks in recent months. Repeated blasts have raised eyebrows over Taliban’s claims of ensuring and increasing security within Afghanistan.
One day before attack
The attack comes just one day after China asked the Taliban regime to increase security of the Chinese mission in Kabul.
Chinese ambassador to Afghanistan Wang Yu in a meeting with Taliban Deputy Foreign Minister, Sher Mohammad Abbas Stanakzai called on the Taliban to pay more attention to the security of the Chinese Embassy.
Stanakzai assured Wang that ensuring the security of foreign political representatives in Afghanistan is the priority of the Islamic Emirate, and also thanked China for humanitarian aid to the country. During the talk, he also emphasized on strengthening and developing economic relations with China.
What happened last week in Kabul?
Earlier this month, there was an attack on Pakistani mission in Kabul, in which the head of mission survived the assassination attempt.
Three days after being targeted by unknown gunmen while taking a walk inside the Pakistan embassy compound in Kabul, Pakistan’s Charge d’Affaires, Ubaid-ur-Rehman Nizamani arrived in Islamabad for talks on security matters.
The Islamic State (IS) also known as Daesh claimed responsibility for the attack in which Nizamani escaped unharmed, but his guard was critically injured and evacuated to Pakistan for treatment.
In a brief statement, IS claimed that its two members armed with “medium weapons and snipers” targeted the ambassador and his guards who were present in the courtyard of the embassy.
But Pakistan said that it was “verifying” the claim made by IS about the attack on its mission in Kabul. Meanwhile, there is doubt about the Taliban’s ability to counter the IS without external support.
Afghanistan-Pakistan border clashes
At least seven people were killed and nearly 30 others received injuries in a major escalation of tensions between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
The Pakistani military said the skirmishes took place in the southwestern border town of Chaman, adjacent to the Afghan province of Kandahar. Pakistan said that the rocket fire also wounded 17 others, and blamed the casualties on the “unprovoked and indiscriminate fire” of heavy weapons by Taliban forces on civilians.
“Such unfortunate incidents are not in keeping with the brotherly ties between the two countries. The Afghan authorities have been informed that recurrence of such incidents must be avoided and strictest possible action must be taken against those responsible,” Pakistan’s Special Envoy to Afghanistan, Mohammad Sadiq said.
Sadiq furthered that it was the responsibility of both sides to protect civilians along the border. The concerned authorities of both countries remain in contact to ensure that there is no further escalation of the situation and recurrence of such incidents is avoided.
Pakistan Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif also said that “unprovoked shelling and fire by Afghan Border Forces at Chaman resulting in martyrdom of several Pakistani citizens and injuring more than a dozen is unfortunate and deserves the strongest condemnation.
Sharif also called on the “Afghan Interim government” to ensure that such incidents are not repeated.
Taliban spokesman for Kandahar governor, Haji Zaid said that one Taliban security force was killed and 10 more wounded in the skirmish.
“Clash took place when we wanted to cut a part of the border fence, it is illegally built and we want this to be removed,” said a Taliban official. Another source said that clashes happened when Pakistani forces demanded the Taliban to stop building a check post on their side of the border. However, the situation is now normal after officials of the two sides met and discussed the issue today.
The Chaman crossing point once remained closed in November and reopened on 21 November after a Taliban member fired on a Pakistani guard, killing one. Two more were wounded in the shooting.
Chaman and the northwestern Torkham border crossing serve as the main transit routes between the two complicating neighbors.
Continuous attacks in Afghanistan
Monday’s attack on a hotel associated with the Chinese in Kabul is among several attacks that have occurred across Afghanistan since the Taliban seized power in August 2021.
Dozens of people have been killed in several attacks in Afghanistan in recent months, even mosques were not spread. Attacks have also taken place inside Kabul’s diplomatic enclave, where in September, an explosion at the Russian embassy killed two people and caused another 20 casualties.
Russia at that time said that two members of the diplomatic mission were killed and there were also victims among Afghan citizens.
In September, a education center was targeted by a bomb in which over 35 people were killed, most of them young students. In yet another attack in the same month targeting a mosque in Herat that killed 18 people.
In July, two civilians were killed in a blast in Kabul International Cricket Stadium during a league match, and thirteen people were also wounded.
In August, yet another bombing ripped through a mosque in Kabul that killed at least 21 people and injured 33.
A number of attacks in recent months in Afghanistan have been blamed on IS.
