Attack on Kabul Ends After 20 Hours of Fighting

Seven Afghans killed in attack by militants armed with suicide vests and rocket-propelled grenades

Video

Taliban attack on U.S. Embassy in Kabul (NBC Nightly News, Sept. 13, 2011) — A coordinated and sustained Taliban attack on the American embassy and the NATO command center in the Afghan capital lasted nearly five hours. ITN’s Neil Connery reports. (01:22)

Reuters, The Associated Press, and NBC News via MSNBC.com
September 13, 2011

KABUL, Afghanistan — An assault by Taliban insurgents on the heart of Kabul’s diplomatic and military enclave has ended after 20 hours, when security forces killed the last of six attackers …

The insurgents had holed up in a multi-storey building still under construction, and launched their attack early on Tuesday afternoon. …

Seven Afghans were killed and 15 wounded in the coordinated daylight attack, which sent foreigners dashing for cover and terrified the city from midday well into the night as U.S. helicopters buzzed overhead. No embassy or NATO staff members were hurt.

At daybreak Wednesday, shooting could still be heard and at least one U.S. Army helicopter was firing at the top floors of a building from which militants had attacked the heavily fortified embassy. Shooting and explosions were heard overnight from the building.

The Afghan Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack and confirmed that the U.S. Embassy, NATO headquarters and other foreign military installations were targets. …

The surge of violence was a stark reminder of the instability that continues to plague Afghanistan nearly a decade after the U.S. invasion that ousted the Taliban in the wake of the Sept. 11 terror attacks on the United States.

It was the third major attack in Kabul since late June, casting fresh doubts on the ability of Afghans to secure their own country as the U.S. and other foreign troops prepare to withdraw by the end of 2014. …

The Taliban’s website published a statement saying “Operation Martyrdom” was under way, CBS News reported.

The attack in Kabul follows a truck bomb which exploded near a NATO base in Afghanistan on Saturday. Four Afghan civilians were killed and 77 U.S. troops wounded.

Violence in Afghanistan is at its worst since U.S.-backed Afghan forces toppled the Taliban government in late 2001, with high levels of foreign troop deaths and record civilian casualties.

Full story

———

Video

Mullen: Pakistan’s ISI behind 2 deadly attacks (NBC Nightly News, Sept. 22, 2011) — Joint Chiefs of Staff Chairman Mike Mullen told Congress he believes Pakistan’s spy agency, the ISI, helped the insurgents behind the attacks on the American Embassy last week that killed 16 people, and a recent truck bomb that wounded 77 American soldiers. NBC’s Brian Williams reports. (00:31)

———

Related reports on this site

A car burns after a suicide blast outside NATO’s Afghanistan headquarters, Saturday, Aug. 15, 2009. (Photo credit: CNN / Getty Images)

Gunbattle Rages for Hours in Kabul, Afghanistan (Aug. 20, 2011)

NATO Returns Fire in Kabul Siege (June 28, 2011)

Taliban Strikes in Heart of Kabul (Feb. 26, 2010)

Taliban Siege Rattles Kabul (Jan. 19, 2010)

Afghan War Closes in on Kabul (Oct. 28, 2009)

NATO Headquarters in Afghanistan Attacked (Aug. 15, 2009)

Mumbai-Like Strike in Kabul (Feb. 12, 2009)

———

FROM THE ARCHIVES

One Year Ago — September 13, 2010

Afghan Anti-American Protests

One year ago today, I reported that two protesters died and four were injured as Afghans protested for a third day against a plan by Florida pastor Terry Jones to burn copies of the Islamic holy book, the Quran.

——

Two Years Ago — September 13, 2009

Bachmann Heads Teabaggers

Two years ago today, on September 13, 2009, I reported that Rep. Michele Bachmann held a town hall meeting in St. Cloud to talk about President Obama’s health care reform proposals – so-called “ObamaCare” – after which she headlined an anti-Obama tea party.

——

Three Years Ago — September 13, 2008

Deadly Car Bombing in Iraq

Three years ago today, on September 13, 2008, I reported that a car bombing in the mainly Shiite Iraqi town of Dujail, 30 miles north of Baghdad, killed at least 32 people and wounded more than 40.