8 suicide bombers, 10 others killed in attack at Kabul hotel - Polidicks

[quote=CNN] Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Eight suicide bombers attacked Kabul's Hotel Inter-Continental in a brazen, carefully orchestrated operation that began Tuesday night and continued into Wednesday, ending with their deaths and those of 10 others, officials said. Two police officers are among the dead, according to the Interior Ministry. "As a result of Afghan National Police, Afghan National Army and Coalition force's fast reaction and by air support of the NATO forces, eight suicide bombers were killed," the ministry said in a statement. Mohammad Zahir, chief of criminal investigations for Kabul police, said Wednesday morning that casualty figures could rise. "We are still searching the hotel; the death number may increase," Zahir said. Twelve people were injured, he added. Interior Minister Bismullah Khan said "the situation is secure." A spokesman for the Taliban, Zabiullah Mujahid, said in an e-mail that the suicide attackers entered the hotel after killing security guards at the entrance. "One of the suicide attackers told us on the phone that they are in the lobby and chasing guests into their rooms by smashing the doors of the rooms," Mujahid told CNN in an e-mail he sent as the incident was unfolding. The top of the hotel was ablaze, but flames were gone within a few hours. Smoke continued to rise from the building Wednesday morning. By dawn, security forces were allowing reporters to approach the hotel, and some guests were seen departing. Saiz Ahmed, a U.S. citizen in Kabul for a Ph.D. project, was among them. "I'm sure none of us thought we were going to make it," he said after having stayed on the floor of his darkened bedroom for more than five hours listening to gunfire and occasional bomb blasts. "I wrote my little will -- just in case." The Taliban penetrated the hotel's typically heavy security in the attack, and one of them detonated an explosion on the second floor, said Erin Cunningham, a journalist for The Daily in Kabul. Rocket-propelled grenades were launched from the roof of the hotel toward the first vice president's house. A few moments later, the hotel was rocked by three explosions, one of which knocked her off her feet, Cunningham said. U.S. forces were on the scene, she added. At about 2 a.m., four hours after the attack began, International Security Assistance Force helicopters fired at insurgents on the roof, killing as many as three of the gunmen, ISAF spokesman Maj. Tim James told CNN. An hour later, ISAF said the Afghan security forces had cleared the roof and were clearing the rest of the hotel. At 4 a.m., police believed that all the attackers were dead, "but one was alive and hidden and he started to resist" and continued to do so until 6:20 a.m., Zahir said. At least one of the attackers detonated his explosives, said Afghan Lt. Gen. Mohammad Ayoub Salangi, the city's chief of police. There were no indications that U.S. military or diplomatic personnel were at the hotel, U.S. officials told CNN. A news conference had been scheduled to take place in Kabul on Wednesday to discuss the planned transition of security from international to Afghan forces that U.S. President Barack Obama announced last week. Obama was briefed on the attack while en route back to Washington from Iowa, White House spokesman Jay Carney told reporters. Members of the Afghan National Security Forces were on the scene, but the city police had the lead, ISAF Maj. Jason Waggoner said in a statement. Waggoner said ISAF forces provided "some limited assistance." The United States condemned the attack on the hotel, with State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland saying it "once again demonstrates the terrorists' complete disregard for human life." The hotel was developed by the InterContinental Hotels Group and opened in 1969. But it has had no association with the group since the Soviet invasion in 1979, though it continues to use the name and logo without connection to the parent company. The incident came on the same day that Lt. Gen. William B. Caldwell announced that NATO and other members of the international community involved in Afghanistan have decided to increase the number of security forces in the Afghan National Army and the Afghan National Police to 352,000. The current number of Afghan National Army and Afghan National Police is about 300,000, the commander of the NATO training mission in Afghanistan and commanding general of the Combined Security Transition Command told the Atlanta Press Club. The increased number will be sufficient to give the Afghans security without coalition forces having to do it, he said. Tuesday's attack recalls a November 2008 assault on luxury hotels in Mumbai, India, which left more than 160 dead, including nine of the 10 gunmen who launched the attacks. Officials said the gunmen targeted the Oberoi and the Taj Mahal hotels for their popularity with international travelers and tourists. The Taj Mahal was set afire. The three-day stand-off between gunmen and police ended with the capture of Mohammad Ajmal Kasab, the only surviving gunman. Kasab was sentenced to death in 2010 and is awaiting an appeal of the decision to the Supreme Court in New Delhi. India says Kasab has told investigators that he and the others were trained for more than a year in Pakistan by Lashkar-e-Tayyiba, a banned Islamic militant group. [/quote] Source: [url]http://edition.cnn.com/2011/WORLD/asiapcf/06/29/afghanistan.kabul.attack/[/url] See, the taliban are just fucking assholes. And look at the people defending them on this thread: [url]http://www.facepunch.com/threads/1101805-Taliban-trick-an-8-year-old-girl-into-being-a-suicide-bomber[/url] Its just dumb. No one defends some group of crazed religious gunman who kill civilians.

That seems like an inefficient use of suicide bombers.

man they were desperate

Good that not hundreds died.

Kinda pisses me off how these suicide bombing motherfuckers are considered 'religious' when they are the exact opposite from it; extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] Not blaming the suicide bombers directly, but most notably those who convince them to do such things as suicide bombing. "In the name of Allah" lmao. The suicide bombers should ask themselves "Would Allah want me to do this..?"

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30804293]Kinda pisses me off how these suicide bombing motherfuckers are considered 'religious' when they are the exact opposite from it; extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] Not blaming the suicide bombers directly, but most notably those who convince them to do such things as suicide bombing. "In the name of Allah" lmao. The suicide bombers should ask themselves "Would Allah want me to do this..?"[/QUOTE] Would Allah want me to have 72 virgins? Well that decides it.

[QUOTE=minilandstan;30804532]Would Allah want me to have 72 virgins? Well that decides it.[/QUOTE] What's so great about 72 facepunchers?

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30804293]Kinda pisses me off how these suicide bombing motherfuckers are considered 'religious' when they are the exact opposite from it; extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men.[/QUOTE] why did you mention their ethnicity

for fun? it doesn't matter as much as the other things of course

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30804293]Kinda pisses me off how these suicide bombing motherfuckers are considered 'religious' when they are the exact opposite from it; extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] Not blaming the suicide bombers directly, but most notably those who convince them to do such things as suicide bombing. "In the name of Allah" lmao. The suicide bombers should ask themselves "Would Allah want me to do this..?"[/QUOTE] Most of them aren't even arabic

god damnit why do you stick to some meaningless factors when there's people blowing up solely for the reason to blow other people up!

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30804293]Kinda pisses me off how these suicide bombing motherfuckers are considered 'religious' when they are the exact opposite from it; extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] Not blaming the suicide bombers directly, but most notably those who convince them to do such things as suicide bombing. "In the name of Allah" lmao. The suicide bombers should ask themselves "Would Allah want me to do this..?"[/QUOTE] Less than 15% of Muslims are actually arabs.

so? that doesn't have anything to do with suicide bombing. i mean for all i care Islam is a religion of love. and this suicide bombing has little-to-nothing to do with love.

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30805566]extremist, brainwashed sadistic arabic men. [/QUOTE] Just saying.

yeah okay, i'm pretty sure most suicide bombers, or those who convince other people to do suicide bombing, are in fact arabic. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] but i wouldnt be surprised if there were a few caucasian or african with them [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] and that doesn't even matter lol

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30805697]yeah okay, i'm pretty sure most suicide bombers, or those who convince other people to do suicide bombing, are in fact arabic. [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] but i wouldnt be surprised if there were a few caucasian or african with them [editline]30th June 2011[/editline] and that doesn't even matter lol[/QUOTE] Did you pull that out of your ass? Why are you pretty sure? How do you know? Is it because that's how they always look like in the movies?

umm.. because it happens there in the east? and there are a lot of arabic people living in there? and where are you even getting at? they still blow up. I might as well ask how do you know most suicide bombers are NOT arabic? even if it doesn't really matter who has the bomb strapped on their torso. and I never cared about that kinda specifics.. you do though apparently.

If the Taliban want their 72 virgins so bad, why don't they just use Facepunch. We have more than plenty to spare. :v:

[QUOTE=Gekkosan;30812146]umm.. because it happens there in the east? and there are a lot of arabic people living in there? and where are you even getting at? they still blow up. I might as well ask how do you know most suicide bombers are NOT arabic? even if it doesn't really matter who has the bomb strapped on their torso. and I never cared about that kinda specifics.. you do though apparently.[/QUOTE] Uh aren't Taliban mainly Pashtun, not Arab? But I mean who gives a shit as long as they're brown amirite or amirite? :rolleyes:

[QUOTE=Ignhelper;30778088] And look at the people defending them on this thread: [url]http://www.facepunch.com/threads/1101805-Taliban-trick-an-8-year-old-girl-into-being-a-suicide-bomber[/url][/QUOTE] Who's defending the taliban? You know, in my 6 years of lurking facepunch, I have maybe seen 3 or 4 people defend the taliban, and most of them had no idea what they were talking about.

That's 1.25 people per suicide bomber, which is a pretty inefficient (Thus good) ratio.

Less people in the world. Thats never a bad thing IMO. Unless I know these people, and like them.

Fuck my dad works in the Intercontinental in New York, I'm glad we weren't transferred to Afghanistan.

What a bunch of bitches, I bet US soldiers have a higher K/D ratio

[QUOTE=FunnyBunny;30819510]What a bunch of bitches, I bet US soldiers have a higher K/D ratio[/QUOTE] Well, US soldiers don't really kill themselves so that's pretty obvious

[QUOTE=POLOPOZOZO;30816463]Uh aren't Taliban mainly Pashtun, not Arab? But I mean who gives a shit as long as they're brown amirite or amirite? :rolleyes:[/QUOTE] i give a shit, to an extent. but i don't give a shit about the bomber's ethnicity even if they happen to be arabic, which i believe some if not most of them are.

This shit happens too much.