KABUL - Perpetrators of the deadly attack on the Intercontinental Hotel in Kabul are responsible for war crimes, the Human Rights Watch said on Tuesday.
The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the 15-long attack on the hotel, during which gunmen killed at least 7 Afghans and 11 foreign nationals, most of them shot dead in their rooms or in the dining room.
The attackers worked their way through the hotel floors, blowing open guest rooms and shooting whoever was inside, or detonating grenades, a statement from HRW said.
Some people were injured or killed jumping out of windows while trying to escape. The death toll may rise further as some hotel guests are reportedly still missing.
It noted a sharp uptick in attacks harming civilians in Afghanistan in the past year. In the first half of 2017, UNAMA documented more civilian deaths and injury from suicide and complex attacks than in any previous period.
“The Intercontinental Hotel attack is a grim reminder of the increasingly routine carnage deliberately inflicted by combatants against civilians in flagrant violation of international law,” the statement said. (Pajhwok)