caps - suicide attack in darul aman kabul _may 18,

8/9/2019 CAPS - Suicide Attack in Darul Aman Kabul _May 18,

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Terrorist Attack ProfileAttack on NATO Convoy in Kabul

CURRENT AS OF: 18 May, 2010

INCIDENT: Suicide Attack

DATE and TIME: 18 May 2010 at approximately 08:00 A.M

PERPETRATED BY: Taliban

TARGET: NATO Convoy

TACTIC: Attack by a suicide bomber

IMPACT: 8 foreign soldiers and 14 Afghans killed, 47 Afghans wounded

LOCATION: Darul Aman road, close to Parliament building, near the

recruitment base of the Afghan National Army


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MAP:

Source: AIMS Map


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ATTACK DETAILS:

On May 18th, 2010 at approximately 08:00 AM, a Taliban suicide bomber rammed his

explosive-filled Super Custom wagon into a NATO convoy on Darul Aman road, near

the new building of the Afghan Parliament and close to an Afghan National Army

recruitment base.

CAPS researchers visited the attack site immediately after the incident took place, and

found 5 vehicles of the NATO convoy and 17 Afghan civilian vehicles damaged; 3

vehicles of the international forces and at least 3 of the civilian vehicles were

completely scorched in the attack. Burnt bodies of the foreigners and the Afghans wereshifted to a hospital nearby. According to Afghan officials at the site of the attack,

approximately 8 foreigners and 14 Afghans were killed while roughly 47 were injured.

The attack was so powerful that it destroyed a part of the strong wall of the Parliament

building. The road where the attack took place was under construction as a result

labourers were among the dead and wounded. Other Afghan casualties included

passengers of a bus that was passing in the area. Shoes, hats, tools and other belongings

of the labourers were part of the debris scattered on the site along with parts of the

shattered military and civilian vehicles.

Afghan and NATO officials were not available for comments; however, officers on the

site said a total of 22 people were killed and around 47 were wounded. American and

Canadian servicemen were said to be among the dead as well. ISAF forces have yet to

comment on their casualties. However, some media reports put the exact number of

casualties at 12 dead and 47 wounded, citing officials in the Ministry of Interior.1

Eyewitnesses cited by international media said the blast was so strong that one of the

vehicles was tossed from one side of the road to the other. The bomb crater was about

three feet deep and nine feet wide. Shrapnel was thrown hundreds of yards.2

The Taliban spokesman, Zabiullah Mujahid, stated to the media from an undisclosed

location, claiming responsibility for the attack and identified the bomber as

Hussamuddin, a resident of Qarabagh district, in Kabul province. He also told reporters

that the vehicle was loaded with 750 kilograms of explosives and the target was the

international forces.3

1 Pajhwok Afghan News- Suicide attack rocks Kabul, 12 killed, 47 wounded- May 18, 20102 Mcclatchydc.com- Suicide bomber hits Nato convoy in Afghanistan- May 18, 20103 Pajhwok Afghan News- Suicide attack rocks Kabul, 12 killed, 47 wounded- May 18, 2010


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VISUAL AIDS:

Body of a NATO soldier


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Attack Scene


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An ANA helicopter airlifting the injured to a nearby hospital

Photo by: CAPS


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ATTACK ANALYSIS:

TARGET ASSESSMENT:

The intended target of the powerful suicide attack was a NATO convoy in the capital.

The years long Afghan insurgency has witness numerous deadly attacks on

internationals as well as Afghan forces which have inflicted heavy casualties. The

Taliban had recently warned of a new countrywide operation that they were going to

launch codenamed Al Fatah which is the Arabic word for victory. This deadly attack

came after the Afghan Defence Ministry rejected the Talibans warnings as baseless

propaganda. This attack also came ahead of President Karzais press conference upon

returning from an important visit to the United States.

The Taliban spokesman who claimed responsibility for the attack warned of more

attacks, similar to this one, aimed for the capital and elsewhere in the country. The

Taliban want the international forces to withdraw of from Afghanistan while the

Afghan government has been insisting on a reconciliation program.

IMPACT ASSESSMENT:

During the compilation of this report, there were no final casualties figures for the

attack. However, initial assessments by security forces put the number between 5 and 8

for the international forces and between 12 and 14 for the Afghan civilians. A numberof military and civilian vehicles were also destroyed. The authorities said about 47

people were wounded; with 5 among them being foreigners while the rest were Afghan

civilians.

The attack took place on a very busy road in the eastern part of the city, close to many

important government offices. It destroyed part of the wall of the new Afghan

Parliament and has badly affected the work that was under construction on that road.

The nearby recruitment base of the Afghan National Army was also affected in terms of

physical and morale damage.

TACTICS ASSESSMENT:

A Super Custom wagon, laden with about 750 kilogram explosives was used in the

powerful attack that inflicted heavy damage on international forces. According to some

eyewitness accounts, the explosive laden vehicle was parked at Darul Aman road and

exploded when a NATO convoy passed by it. But officers in the ANA recruitment base

close to the location said the bomber rammed his car into the convoy which was coming

from the opposite side.


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ATTACK INVESTIGATION:

Officials from the Ministry of Interior and Intelligence immediately launched an

investigation into the attack to find out how the insurgents were able to shift such a

heavy amount of explosives to the heavily secured Afghan capital. Also it was not

immediately known whether the bomber knew before hand, that a NATO convoy was

going to pass through this road hence parking their vehicle there.

The Ministry of Interior in its initial assessment only confirmed that it was a suicide

attack and that an investigation had been launched.

ATTACK RESPONSE:

The NATO Forces:

NATO forces quickly secured the area and a helicopter evacuated the wounded from

the attack scene. NATO forces have yet to issue a formal statement about the attack.

However, international soldiers at the attack scene were witnessed shifting the wounded

to hospitals and clearing the area. Investigators from different NATO branches took

notes of the materials that were used in the bomb for further investigation.

AFGHAN GOVERNMENT:

The Ministry of Interior as usual issued a press release in which it condemned the attack

as inhumane and un-Islamic and a work of the enemies of Afghanistan. The

Ministry confirmed it was a suicide attack carried out by terrorist elements that did not

want to see Afghanistan progress.

Considering that many of the dead were Afghan civilians, different departments of the

Afghan government identified the attack as an attack on the people of Afghanistan. The

Afghan government, the United Nations and many human rights groups have been

blaming the Taliban for the majority of civilian casualties in Afghanistan. The Taliban

have always rejected these assessments as foreign propaganda and never

acknowledged that many of their attacks have taken civilian lives.


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PRIVATE BUSINESS:

Attacks like this usually affect private businesses across the city. Though this particular

attack took place in a part of the city that was not close to the central hub of business

activity in Kabul, the impact was clear as people called their relatives in the city to

close their shops and businesses and to remain indoors. In this context, the attack was

not only successful in killing many people but the Taliban were also able to create panic

in the city.

SOCIETY:

For that reason, Afghan society is largely affected by attacks of this kind. As the typical

definition of terrorism says terrorizing a thousand people by killing one person, thisparticular attack affected all lives in the capital. Many people from other parts of the

city took the day off from work as rumours spread of more suicide bombers prowling

the city looking for targets.

GENERAL AND SECURITY IMPLICATIONS:

General implications of Tuesdays attack vary from negative effects on the political

scene to the disturbance of daily life in Kabul. The attack can be described as a strike

on President Karzais reconciliation plan for which he recently visited the United States

to seek support from senior US officials. Furthermore, the Taliban could have intendedto use this attack to show their capability in targeting the capital after Afghan officials

claimed improvements in their counter-terrorism efforts.

The security implications are more evident, as the bomber was able to break all security

barriers and hit the international forces in the heart of the country. In terms of

casualties, it might be the deadliest attack in several months as so many foreigners were

killed and their convoy destroyed. This will inevitably further affect the negative

perceptions of the Afghan populace concerning the capacity of the Afghan government.

Moreover, this is again, a clear message to the Afghan government and the international

forces to not take Taliban threats and warnings lightly and to always remain alert and

ready for more terrorist attacks.

caps - suicide attack in darul aman kabul _may 18,

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