Taliban sends Obama a deadly message

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KABUL, Afghanistan — Shortly before 10 a.m. on Feb. 11, the Taliban delivered its response to President Barack Obama's new Afghanistan policy.

In a series of well-coordinated attacks on Afghan government offices in Kabul, the insurgents demonstrated that they had no intention of taking America's renewed interest in the country lightly.

At least 20 people died and more than 50 were wounded as suicide bombers and gunmen went on a rampage in the heart of the capital.

Interior Minister Hanif Atmar convened a press conference at the end of the long and difficult day, acknowledging that he and his ministry bore some blame for failing to prevent the attacks.

"It is extremely worrying that the enemy is now able to get weapons and explosives right into the center of Kabul," he told reporters. "We have to work harder."

The Taliban took responsibility for the assault, saying that they were exacting revenge for harsh treatment of their members who are in government custody.

"We decided to teach the government a lesson," said Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahed. "They have to behave more decently towards our men in prison."

But the lesson, it seemed, was not just for the Afghan government. Analysts lost no time in linking the violence to the imminent arrival of U.S. Special Envoy Richard Holbrooke, due in Kabul on Thursday.

Holbrooke will find much to confirm his recent dreary assessment of the situation in Afghanistan, which he characterized as a "mess" in remarks at the Munich Security Conference.

In fact, say observers, Taliban members are demonstrating that they will not be cowed by Obama's much-debated focus on Afghanistan, with talk of troop surges and increased operations.

"The Taliban are saying, 'look, we can also step up the pressure,'" said Abdulrauf Liwal Husseinkhel, a political analyst in Kabul. "They are trying to show that more troops will mean an increase in attacks, not a decrease."

The day of mayhem began at 9:50 a.m., when suicide bombers simultaneously stormed the Ministry of Justice, the Directorate of Prison Affairs and the Education Ministry.

The heaviest fighting took place at the Ministry of Justice, a stone's throw from the Presidential Palace. Five attackers attempted to gain entry, said security officials, but two were immediately shot and killed. Three managed to penetrate inside the building.

While terrified employees cowered behind their desks or hid in the restrooms, gunmen wearing explosives-laden vests roamed the corridors.

"We had no idea whether we would get out alive," said one staffer, who did not want to give her name. "All we could hear was shooting. Finally the police came to save us."

Afghans could watch events unfold on national television, as the police and special forces threw ladders up against the side of the building, climbing in through the windows with their Kalashnikovs at the ready. The popular private station Tolo TV even interrupted its widely watched soap operas for regular bulletins.

At about 1 p.m. the Interior Ministry announced that the fighting was over, with all attackers killed before they could detonate their vests. The justice minister, Sarwar Danesh, escaped unharmed, but Health Ministry officials told media that at least a dozen people had been killed and more than 40 wounded in the siege.

As gunmen rampaged through the Justice Ministry, two more suicide bombers attacked the Directorate of Prison Affairs, across town in the northern suburb of Khair Khana.

Eyewitnesses described the scene as "Doomsday."

According to Aref, the general who heads the prison directorate, one attacker detonated his vest outside the gate, while the second made it up to the second floor. Then a powerful explosion took the front off the building, scattering blood, glass, and body parts in a 500 meter radius. Seven people were confirmed dead, and 15 wounded, although officials acknowledged that the numbers could rise.

"There were ambulances going back and forth, taking dead bodies from the building," said Gul Rahim, a resident of the area who had run to help. "They took a lot of people out, men, women, children, civilians, military, everybody. There was a man lying in a ditch, screaming. I ran towards him, but the police stopped me."

At the same time, a third suicide bomber attempted to enter the Ministry of Education, but was targeted and killed. He managed to detonate his vest, but killed only himself.

By early afternoon the sirens of police cars and ambulances had died away. But the Afghan capital was in a de facto state of emergency. Roads were closed and shops shuttered, as residents and officials alike struggled to come to terms with a new reality. The Taliban could strike any time, any place, even in the center of the city.

The police on the street seemed, at times, even more panicked than the general population.

"There are 90 suicide bombers loose in Kabul!" said one officer, with a trace of hysteria. He was standing in front of the Education Ministry, a short distance away from where the suicide bomber had died. There were police checkpoints at every major intersection, and progress through Kabul was faster on foot than by car.

But by nightfall the streets were deserted, without a sign of even the normal police presence. The few vehicles that were on the street careened madly through the town, barreling into normally clogged roundabouts at full speed.

While many wondered uneasily what the morning might bring, other battle-hardened Kabulis shrugged off the day's events.

"You have to understand, this town has been through many wars, many attacks," said Abaceen Nasimi, a journalist in Kabul. "This is nothing."

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