Matthew Evans 1/23/18 Period 4 Publisher of Article: CNN Date of Publication: 1/22/18 Name of Article: Kabul Hotel Siege: Journalist describes night of terror from inside Author of Article: Ehsan Popalzai and Susannah Cullinane This article is about the attack on the five-star intercontinental hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan in which 18 hotel guests were killed. Described as a night of terror, guests were forced to hide and even jump from hotel balconies as they were subjected to explosions and screams the entire night. Most rooms in the hotel were struck by grenades and people attempting to flee were shot by the assailants. A fire also broke out in the hotel which left many people to become stranded on their balconies. To escape, some guests used bed sheets as a way of moving down floors until they reached the ground. Others had no way of reaching the ground, so some resorted to jumping from the hotel balconies rather than being burned by the fast approaching flames. That act has also contributed to the death toll rise. Authorities have said that since the investigation is still underway, the death toll could be as high as 43 people. Even though the attack started at 8pm on January 20, authorities hadn't cleared the hotel of the assailants and rescued guests until 6am the next day. 153 people were saved once the attack on the hotel ended, in which all 4 assailants were killed by special forces. 12 out of the 18 victims were foreigners and 41 out of the 153 saved guests were also foreigners. Hours since the attack, the Taliban released a statement claiming responsibility for the attack. They also warned Afghan citizens to avoid foreign hot spots such as the hotel, one of the only five-star hotels in the country. While it isn't certain as to what they meant by this statement, I can infer that they don't want Afghan citizens affected by attacks which are meant to target places teeming with foreigners. The Taliban is an organization of insurgents who controlled almost all of Afghanistan from 1996-2001. During that time, most of Afghanistan was under strict Islamic law placed by the Taliban. Having so much power, they went around committing massacres and destroying towns. Their terrorizing reign led to the deaths of thousands of innocent civilians across Afghanistan. After the government of Afghanistan retook major parts of the country in 2001, the Taliban was reduced to small pockets towards the borders of the country. Even though their big force has been turned to scattered forces, they still have the manpower to cause tragedies like this, even in the capital of the country. This isn't the first time the intercontinental hotel has been attacked. The hotel was also attacked in a similar way in 2011. This attack was led out by a series of suicide bombers who blew up rooms and shot at the guests. The Taliban also claimed responsibility for this attack which killed 12 people. Security at this luxurious hotel was always in the hands of a private company, but since these two very similar attacks took place, Parliament is holding a meeting pertaining the issue. In general, Afghanistan has been constantly threatened by terrorism for more than 2 decades now and has played a big role in the war on terrorism, which began in 2001. Overall, this entire situation has been one of sadness and grief. Even the most luxurious places of a country are subjected to tragedies such as these. Hopefully the government can reach an agreement to place high security measures on the hotel and other places which are frequently attacked by insurgents such as the Taliban. There also needs to be a global enforcement on good relationships between countries because having unified manpower will be a greater ally in the long run. While the war on terror is a long and complicated struggle, the unification between countries will allow us to put a stop to these radical ideals. Here is the link to the article I used for my research on this topic: www.cnn.com/2018/01/22/asia/kabul-intercontinental-hotel-omeri/index.html In this photo, an Afghan soldier stands watch as authorities clear the hotel and investigate the tragedy. I will comment on Rachna's and Michael's blog posts.
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April 2018
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