20 Dead as Taliban Attackers Storm Kabul Offices

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KABUL, Afghanistan — Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen struck government buildings at three sites here on Wednesday, killing at least 20 people and wounding 57. It was a complex and closely coordinated attack that demonstrated the ease with which the insurgents could penetrate even Kabul, Afghanistan’s heavily fortified capital.

At the Justice Ministry, five Taliban guerrillas armed with explosives and Kalashnikov rifles killed two guards, stormed inside and took control of the building for more than an hour. Frightened employees, including the justice minister, barricaded themselves in their offices while the armed men stalked the halls for victims. At least 10 people were killed, including 2 who were shot in the cross-fire between government forces and the insurgents, security officials said.

Afterward, security forces carried the mangled bodies of the attackers out of the building and, in a sign of deep disrespect, dumped the bodies unceremoniously on the concrete forecourt. All eight attackers at the three sites were killed in addition to their 20 victims, the Interior Ministry said.

Coming on the eve of a scheduled visit by Richard C. Holbrooke, President Obama’s special envoy to the region, who wound down a visit to Pakistan on Wednesday, the attacks underscored the deteriorating security in Afghanistan and the growing sense of siege in the capital.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/12/world/asia/12afghan.html?_r=1&th&emc=th