Kosh Raj Koirala

Nepali nationals have narrowly escaped deaths in the wee hours on Tuesday when Taliban militants exploded a truck bomb and indiscriminately opened fire at a NATO supply company´s compound in Kabul, the capital city of Afghanistan.

Nepali workers serving with the DynCorp International said four Nepalis were injured while trying to run away from the incident site immediately after the truck bomb rocked the compound of Hotel Pinnacle near Kabul Airport. “While one of the injured has already been discharged from the hospital, three others are currently undergoing treatment at a local US Military Hospital,” said Ganesh Basnet, who along with other Nepali colleagues was sleeping in the hotel when the deadly attack took place.

Basnet, who hails from Dolakha district, said one Binod Adhikari of Lalitpur was released later in the afternoon from the hospital after treatment, while three others --Sudhir Limbu of Dharan, Sunsari, Bipin Simkhada of Dhading and Basu Dev Ranabhat of Pokhara -- are currently undergoing treatment at the hospital. “Their health condition is stable,” Basnet told Republica over telephone from Kabul.

Though international media quoting Afghan police said four Nepali guards were among the 10 killed in the blast, Basnet confirmed that no Nepali was killed in the incident that took place at 4:35 am. The deceased in the Taliban attacks are learnt to be Indian, Afghan and Romanian nationals.

The bomb left a large crater in the ground, and reduced walls and a guard post to a pile of rubble and twisted steel. Police, according to AFP, said some suicide vests were later detonated by the security forces.

Around 400 workers including 60 Nepali nationals were living in the Pinnacle Hotel, which the US contractor DynCorp International had made its main office in Afghanistan. They have now been transferred to a nearby Hotel Barun as the Taliban attack left the building hugely damaged.

Basnet said while two Taliban gunmen were killed in the Hotel Pinnacle compound, one other was shot dead when he was entering the hotel during an exchange of fire from their side that lasted for about 40 minutes. Afghan police, according to international media, said all the assailants were shot dead.

The AFP reported that the contractor group provides many NATO bases with food, water, fuel and other supplies, as well as maintains military storage buildings. Its compound is close to UN offices and a string of NATO bases.

Published on: 3 July 2013 | Republica