Day 97 (84 days to go…) - A sad day

Alright… disclaimer: I am completely alright.

Today began as I was in bed, trying to get a few more minutes of sleep. I knew I should get up soon, but I was still tired. I heard my roommate get up, put some shoes on, and leave to go to the restroom. A couple seconds later I heard the blast door to the building bang shut. Later my roommate said how he had shut it after he found it wide open. Those doors should always be shut, but people always leave them open. A couple seconds after hearing the door I heard something else… another bang though this time much much louder. Additionally the entire room shook violently. It didn’t help I was on top of the bunk bed. Startled and now wide awake, I tried to comprehend exactly what was going on. I crawled down and put on my shoes as my roommate came. It was also around this time that alarms began to sound.

Explosion

My roommate had been across the hall in the restroom at the time. He said there was an explosion outside. My phone rang; it was Hal. He was doing a personal check. He told me to stay put, but also said he couldn’t get a hold of Jamie, and asked if I could see if I could find him. (His room is just a couple rooms down from mine. My roommate and I went out into the hall to find a bunch of other people gathering, wondering what was going on. I found Jamie, and let Hal know the two of us were safe.

Everyone was searching on their cell phones and tablets online to try and see what had happened. It didn’t take long for news sites to start rolling out news, though many of the early reports were all conflicting and eventually turned out to be wrong.

Eventually I got into the office and was able to get some better information.

CNN recounts what had happened:

 A suicide bomber killed six people and wounded four others near the headquarters of the NATO-led International Security Assistance Force in Afghanistan on Saturday, officials said.

The six killed were civilians, said Interior Ministry spokesman Siddiq Siddiqi.

The explosion took place in Kabul's diplomatic quarters, home to a number of foreign embassies.

Among those killed in the explosion were children, Police Chief Ayoub Salangi said.

There were no NATO casualties in the explosion near Camp Eggers, said Jamie Graybeal, a spokesman for the international forces. He said the base is secure.

The Taliban have claimed responsibility for the attack.

…

Police believe the assailant was between ages 13 and 20. 

(Source: http://www.cnn.com/2012/09/08/world/asia/afghanistan-violence/index.html)

So again I am completely alright. Today is still a very sad day. All this attack managed to do was to kill some civilians, most of them children. The attacker himself was only a child, no doubt having grown up around and brainwashed by the Taliban. The Taliban claim they are resistance fighters, but all I see in attacks like this is a bunch of child murderers. It truly is sad.



~David