The Islamic State (IS) organization claimed responsibility for the attack on a hotel frequented by Chinese businessmen in the Afghan capital on Monday, in which at least three people were killed. Witnesses reported hearing numerous explosions and bursts of gunfire.
As Taliban security forces rushed to the scene and blocked off the area, smoke was pouring out of the multi-story Kabul Longan Hotel.
Since taking over control in August last year, the Taliban assert that security has improved, yet there have been numerous bombings and attacks, many of which the local IS chapter has claimed responsibility for.
One kilometer from the explosion scene, an Italian non-governmental organization called Emergency NGO reported it had received 21 injured, including three who had already died.
It was not specified whether the deceased were attackers or civilians.
Three assailants were killed, and one suspect was taken into custody, according to a police official in Kabul, who blamed “mischievous elements” for the attack.
The main Taliban spokesperson, Zabiullah Mujahid, stated on Twitter, “All the hotel guests have been rescued, and no foreigner was killed.” Only two foreign guests were hurt when they hurled themselves from an upper level.
A statement released on Monday said that two IS members “attacked a large hotel in Kabul where Chinese diplomats and businessmen often stayed and blew up two bombs hidden in two suitcases.”
The group said in a statement that one of the two fighters, whom IS identified as Abu Umar and Abdul Jabbar, started detonating explosive devices and firing at hotel guests, while the other started firing at guests and throwing hand grenades at Taliban officers. The group claimed that 30 people were injured or killed.
A video that was shared on social media showed people climbing out of windows on the building’s lower floors while the hotel sign, which was clearly visible in both English and Chinese, played.
In another video, massive flames and dense plumes of smoke could be seen shooting out of another area.
Additionally, a helicopter conducted multiple passes over the area.
After the Taliban came back to power, many Chinese business travelers rushed to Afghanistan in search of risky but potentially profitable business opportunities. Many of them stay at the hotel.
China, one of the few nations to keep a full diplomatic mission in Afghanistan, which it borders on a rough 76 km (47 mi) border, has not formally recognized the Taliban authority.
delicate border
Beijing has been worried for a long time that Uyghur separatists from a minority group could use Afghanistan as a staging ground to attack Xinjiang.
In exchange for the Taliban’s promise that Afghanistan wouldn’t be used as a base for militants, China has promised to help rebuild Afghanistan with money and investments.
Beijing’s main goal in trying to protect its borders and strategic infrastructure investments in neighboring Pakistan, where the China-Pakistan Economic Corridor is located, is to keep the peace. This is because Afghanistan has been at war for decades.
The Taliban try to show that Afghanistan is a safe place for diplomats and businesspeople, but in September, two staff members were killed when a suicide bomber blew himself up in front of the Russian embassy.
According to State Department spokesman Ned Price, the United States on Monday urged the Taliban to “live up to the obligations that they’ve made to the international community.”
“Providing a society free from this kind of terrorist atrocity is one of those commitments.”
He continued, “For far too long, the Afghan people have endured levels of bloodshed that are far too high.”
The attack on Pakistan’s mission in Kabul last month, which Islamabad condemned as an “assassination attempt” against the ambassador, was also attributed to IS.
In that assault, a security guard sustained injuries.
China has not advanced any of the big projects it owns the rights to in Afghanistan, most notably the Mes Aynak copper mine.
The Taliban are depending on China to develop one of the world’s greatest copper reserves into a working mine that would aid the economically struggling and sanctioned country in recovering.
