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WASHINGTON: The United States condemned Tuesday a Taliban suicide attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, offering condolences to victims but providing no details on the number of casualties.
At least one suicide bomber and several gunmen attacked the hotel typically frequented by foreigners and Afghan officials, police and officials said, in a brazen strike claimed by the Taliban.
Witnesses reported hearing three explosions late Tuesday at the high-security hotel on a hill overlooking the Afghan capital, as gunmen penetrated the building and sparked a shootout.
The State Department indicated that all US diplomatic staff were safe and confirmed US special envoy Marc Grossman and all the members of his visiting delegation had safely departed the country and were en route to Washington.
“The United States strongly condemns the attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul, which once again demonstrates the terrorists' complete disregard for human life,” it said in a written statement.
“We extend our condolences to the families and friends of the victims of this attack,” it continued.
“All chief of mission personnel are accounted for. We do not have any information about private American citizens at this time, but continue to follow up on the situation.”
Grossman had been in Kabul for talks with Afghan and Pakistani officials on peace talks with the Taliban as the United States seeks to wind down its hefty military involvement in the country after nearly a decade of war.
“Today was the meeting of the core group - US, Afghanistan, Pakistan - to talk about the full complex of issues, but, in particular, to continue to work on rules of the road for peaceful reconciliation of Taliban,” State Department spokeswoman Victoria Nuland told an earlier press briefing.
The attack comes weeks before foreign forces are expected to start withdrawals from Afghanistan, although security in the capital Kabul is already under the control of Afghan security forces.
Some 10,000 United States troops will leave Afghanistan this year, US President Barack Obama announced last week, ahead of the planned end of foreign combat operations at the end of 2014.
Obama, who visited the election battleground state of Iowa earlier, was briefed during his flight back by a national security aide on the Kabul attack, White House spokesman Jay Carney said.
