20 Dead as Taliban Attackers Storm Kabul Offices

Five Taliban suicide bombers and gunmen armed with explosives and rifles stormed the Justice Ministry Office in Kabul on Wednesday. The guerrillas took control of the office for more than an hour, causing casualties of 20 dead, and 57 wounded. It was more than an hour after when security forces finally retook control of the building and started to evacuate people in the building. Afterwards, all eight attackers were killed by security forces.

The attack came on the eve of a scheduled visit by Richard C. Holbrooke, President Obama's special envoy to Afghanistan. Considering Kabul is the most heavily fortified capital in the country, it demonstrates that even such fortified capital can be a victim of Taliban attack without a more proper and prepared security system.

Mr. Holbrooke's visit to Kabul was made as a part of President Obama's policy in Afghanistan and Pakistan to increase American force levels in the regions. The degree of attacks like this made by Taliban in Afghanistan will definitely influence President Obama's policy to deal with Taliban, who is in control of much of the countryside and is gradually moving its forces into major cities, endangering people in the regions.

One senior official in Washington pointed out that the Wednesday's attack indicated the intimate ties between the insurgents and Pakistan's tribal areas, supporting that the attack was planned and supported by the Pakistan-based network of Jalaluddin Haqqani, which was also accused of the last summer's attack on the Indian Embassy in Kabul.

Opinion: I have currently read a novel called The Kite Runner. The novel depicts Afghanistan and Pakistan societies in the present days with a man who brings a boy to the United States. The novel is based on the year 2001 when the capital city Kabul was under control of Taliban. In this article, I could learn that Taliban forces have now been removed from the major cities, and are now mostly in control of the countryside. However, now the Taliban forces are endangering the city by guerrilla attacks with a small group of bombers and gunmen. Therefore, I think that the United States and other world powers should protect Afghanistan from Taliban attacks by bolstering security levels with a more number of military forces. As President Obama's policy promises, it is important for the United States to send more troops to Afghanistan and . Moreover, the ties between Taliban and Pakistan's tribal areas should be investigated more thoroughly as such ties can hinder our attempts to bring peace back in the region. As well, I hope Pakistan could also join the United States' peacekeeping project and do their parts because they can make huge influences on Afghanistan as a neighbouring country. At last, it seems that President Obama's envoy, Mr. Holbrooke, was not successful in convincing Pakistan tribal areas not to help Taliban because the attack came right after his visit to the areas.