Eyewitness To Terror At Kabul Hotel

The following is an email sent by Lisa Gans, an NGO worker living in Kabul, to her friends and family following Monday's attack on the Serena Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan. Lisa was trapped in the hotel during the attack and witnessed the events firsthand.

Hi all,

An hour ago I was rescued from the basement of the Serena Hotel in Kabul
by ISAF forces. I'm a member of the gym there and had gone to work out.
I'd just gone into the reception area to ask for an internet access card
when several blasts shook the building and I and the only
other person in the reception, a woman from the Philippines who worked
in the hotel spa, heard gunfire and grenades. A young man who also
works for the hotel ran in screaming that there was someone shooting
people in the hotel lobby. He ran into a back room and I ducked behind
a desk as the sounds got louder, and the shooting more rapid. I peered
out from the side of the desk as a man, dressed as a member of the
Afghan security forces with a long beard came from the men's locker
area, firing an AK-47. He turned his head, saw me crouched behind the
desk, looked directly at me and then fired into the chest of the other
woman. She fell to the ground and he ran out, stepping over her body.
As I sit here now, I still don't know why he didn't shoot me. I heard
more gunshots and someone screaming in agony as he ran down the hall.

Hiding under the desk, I noticed a list of hotel phone extensions and I
pulled the phone down and tried to call for help, but no one
answered. If no one was answering any major extension, it had to mean
that something major had happened in another part of the hotel. The
gunfire continued and bits of the plaster from the ceiling started to
come down. I was at once completely present and totally outside of the
situation. At one point, I looked down at my hand to see if it was
shaking, but it was rock steady. Feeling too exposed, I crawled along
the floor to the back room where the young man had run. Inside were a
series of other doors, and on the other side of one I could hear people
speaking English. I pounded and yelled for help. A voice yelled
back that someone on the other side had been shot and they were
administering CPR, but that he would try to break down the door to get
to me. Unlike in the movies, doors with steel locks are a bit harder to
break and he couldn't get through. Just as he was making a last
attempt, a back elevator door opened, and the young man who had run
through reception before called to me to get in. I did, and we went
down to hide in a freezing dark storage room in the basement of the
hotel.

As soon as we had concealed ourselves there, I realized that my phone,
which has in it all of my emergency contacts was still up in the gym. I
told the young man, Ahmad, to stay hidden and took the elevator back
up. Two men in flack jackets marked "press" were in the reception area
standing over the body, taking photos. "She's gone." one told me, and I
sprinted into the gym area, grabbed my phone and ran back to ask what
was going on. One of the journalists told me that there had been a
suicide bombing at the hotel and that gunmen were on the loose inside
the building. They told me that the area had not been secured, and that
they had no other information. So, I made a decision that was to save
my life for a second time tonight, and retreated to the basement. From
there, I called ANSO, the group that provides security assistance to NGO
workers in Afghanistan and told them where I was hiding. They told me
not to worry, that the bomber had detonated outside the hotel and that
everything was under control. "I just saw a gunman shoot a woman right
in front of me and there is gunfire in the hotel!" "Are you sure?" one
of them asked. I hung up. After that, I started texting my friends in
different organizations to ask for help. Overhead, we heard shooting,
screams and footsteps but couldn't make out exactly what was
happening.

Ahmad's brother works for the Afghan military and was with the ISAF
forces that entered the building. Using my phone, he described our
location. Over the next two and a half hours, we got periodic updates
from ANSO, my friends gathering information from the news, the U.S.
Embassy and various Afghan ministries, and Ahmad's brother. They all
offered the same advice. "Stay put and out of sight until the building
is secured and then ISAF will come to get you." A few times we heard
people in the corridors nearby, but no one came to our location and we
turned our phones to silent and hid in the back of the room.
The basement got increasingly cold, and Ahmad started to worry about his
co-workers. He tried to reach his supervisor on the phone, but couldn't
get through. "She is a very nice woman." he told me. "She comes from
the Phillipines." I confirmed the physical description and that she had
been standing in the reception area when he first came through, yelling
about the shooter. Then I had to tell him that she was dead.

Every few minutes, one of us would try to text someone on the outside,
either to get information or let them know that we were ok. Ahmad also
called his brother at regular intervals, and though he received
reassurances that help was on the way, we sat in the basement for
several hours. Finally, a call came, and we stepped out into the hall.
Two rag-tag looking Afghan soldiers, a hotel employee, and a heavily
armed U.S. solider who identified himself as being with the F.B.I. came
towards us, weapons drawn. They were clearly on edge, and there seemed
to be some disagreement as to where to take us. The American took
charge and calmly asked me for my name, contact details and a brief
overview of what had happened. I confirmed that I was a U.S. citizen and
he led me through basement tunnels until we reached a staircase that led
to the lobby of the hotel.

The lobby was swarming with ISAF forces, all heavily armed. The windows
of the hotel were shattered and there was glass everywhere. Behind the
reception desk, I noticed three large blood stains soaking through
towels on the floor. The corridor ahead that led back to the gym was
splattered with large red streaks and blood was congealing in ugly
pools on the floor. Still dressed in my gym clothes, I started
shivering and was given a jacket and asked to give a statement to
security personnel from the U.S. Embassy who were on the scene. As I
talked to a solider with a notebook, others began bringing bodies in,
along with frightened looking Afghan employees who had been found hiding
in parts of the hotel. I explained that my passport, credit cards and
computer were all still inthe gym and asked if someone could escort me
back when it was secured. After another half hour, a U.S. soldier took
me back.

When I walked into the reception area, I stopped, stunned. The body of
the woman I had seen die was gone, but the rest of the room was riddled
with bullet holes and there were several large pools of blood all around
the room. "You had two shooters," I said "or the guy came back." Over
the next hour, I walked two other ISAF soldiers through the scene and
explained that the second round of killings (apparently the gunman came
though the men's locker room again and killed several people just after
I had returned to the basement for the second time) had happened after
the the women had died. Then I watched the grainy surveillance footage
from the security cameras and was at least able to confirm that the guy
on tape shooting up the hotel lobby looked very similar to the one I had
seen shoot the woman in the gym's reception area.

The hotel was under lockdown and for a while there seemed to be no way
out. Then some ambulance workers came and handed me their cell phone.
They were subcontractors for the security firm that works for my friends
organization and they had come to retrieve one of their own employees.
My friend had convinced them to take me as well, and so I walked out to
where the bomb had detonated outside the front of the hotel, past dozens
of ISAF tanks, and into an ambulance that brought me back to my friend's
guest house, where I am now.

Tonight was the closest I have ever come to death, and the longest I
have ever had to consider the real possibility that my death might be
imminent. I didn't have a religious awakening, and I can find no good
reason why I am alive, and so many others who went to that same hotel
and same gym are dead. But I am terribly terribly glad to be here. And
so I wanted to reach out to all of you, and remind you to make the most
of your lives and to enjoy the people you hold dear. And I wanted to
extend a thanks, though words fail me a bit here, to those who called
and texted while I was in that basement, and who gave me encouragement
and tried to help get me out.

Tonight, I have decided to take a job with an organization here that has
a security profile much like the one of the organization I worked for in
Iraq -- a fortified compound, armed guards, minimal travel and
movement. It means a completely different way of living, and of
interacting with the world. Still, I hope that it will allow me to make
a needed difference in this place. I hope that this country will not go
the way of Iraq, but I'm sure that I'm not the only one here who sees
this as a dramatic event that will shift the security situation on the
ground. This tragedy will have broader-reaching implication, not only
for me, but for the country of Afghanistan. I wanted to reach out to
you all tonight to make the events here seem a bit more real, to tell
you my story, and to let you know that I am alive and thinking of my
friends and family around the world.

Love,

Lisa

Comments

[politicky]

Lisa, glad you survived and I'm really not trying to diminish NGOs overall, but I'm getting really cynical about Americans working with NGOs in Iraq and Afghanistan.

It's like putting a band-aid on a bullet wound and we shot the gun.

Got any idea why these wars were started?

read this: http://www.naomiklein.org/shock-doctrine

[otiswaynehale]

Lisa, you are a courageous and prudent young woman who showed considerable grace under fire. Keep your head down while you are there.

[Orlando]

Good luck in all of that.
I choose not to live my life in war zones.

[TXfemmom]

Lisa, I am so glad that you survived, and had the wits and assistance from the Iraqi gentleman in doing so. Obviously, some Iraqis are good and decent people.

I cannot see much hope for a place when human beings are so willing to treat other human beings as trash, and to kill without regard for humanity.

[shanghaislim]

Good job Lisa on survival. I have a dear friend working for TIME in Kabul and I worry about her everyday. I will tell you what I told her a few months ago on her visit to Hong Kong.

Keep your head down and I know you are trying to make a difference and it's your job, but please reconsider as the benefits do not outweigh the risks. Also, please think of your family. I know they say they are proud and respect what you do.....

.....but really, your friends and family want you out of there.

[MrCoffeeCup]

God had give you a few more days Lisa Gans and it's with good reason. First, let me say that I am happy to see you are healthy and somewhat safer. Second, to witness a cold brutal murder and be within inches of it will affect you for years to come. However, you can use this tragedy to make something good of the sacrifice/murder of that Philippino woman. She was targeted to die. She was Phillipino(darker skinned) like the Afghans. She was a foreigner assisting the New Kabul government to re-establish order there. This was a message to the Phillipinos to STAY OUT OF KABUL! To the Local dark skinned Afghans Stay away from the new government. It's brutal and effective!

Now write about what will happen to America if it comes here. And it will be playing out at your local supermarkets/megastores/shopping centers by terrorists. Tell us how it is totally numbing and stikes the deepest fears of our psychic. Tell us about how these Islamic terrorists don't give a damn about women, children or anything else. We've seen it in Spain, England, Italy, and America(9-11)lest you forget. Tell us Lisa how these HATE FILLED terrorists will come here eventually unless they can be stopped in their own home territory! Al-Queada will not surrender! Unless they are all killed; Suicide is the E-ticket to their heaven. This kind of terror is what the've been led to believe is morally correct!
Write to us about the look of hate in the killer's eyes. Remember his face. He must be brought to trial for cold blooded murder! Identify him and help send him to the gallows for the murder of an innocent woman.

[curiousasheck]

Taliban Promises More Kabul Attacks

Lisa needs to get the hell out of there.

[curiousasheck]

So whats the real story over there. According to Bush Central and Fox Central everything is going swell!

[khristmaskathy]

Thank you for sharing your experience. It touched me deeply. I applaud your bravery and am very glad you are okay. Take good care...

[Unrepentantliberal]

Lisa. Thanks for sharing your story and I'm thankful you made it out safely. Reading your account made the hair stand up on the back of my neck.

[wrabbitt]

Risking life and limb to cover a story has cost enough lives hasn't it? I respect you journalistic fortitude. But, if Iran procures a nuclear weapon, are you going to be in the forefront? Or will you Go to Iran to see Israels answer first hand? We all know A WMD will end up in some religious fanatic hands. But, maybe sanity will prevail! mideast peace will be better if someone is left to enjoy it.

[realitybase]

I am moved by your story of life and death and can only think of the many journalists (unembedded) that risk their lives each day to give the world a real view into what happens when societies break down.

You are very fortunate, I'm sure you will question again and again why you weren't shot. Whether it was luck or the grace of god, the fact that you are still here gives you and your reader and idea how mortal we all are.

Thanks for your coverage from Kabul.

[Riverwolf]

Lisa, thank you for sharing your story and making it more real to us here in the States, so far removed from what is really going on and the risks involved. Stay safe.

[deminmo]

To my mind, this woman is exceptionally brave.
And this is true reporting, no censorship, no
sugar coating. Thank God she is alive to tell
what she saw.
My question to President Bush is, when you gave
Musharraf money to fight al Qaeda, and found
out he didn't use it for that purpose, what did
you do? Why do we have terrorists fleeing from
Afghanistan toward Pakistan for safety? And now
that they have issued more threats (found this
on an international news site) what do you plan
to do?

[lizjaye]

Lisa. Your story is amazing. I doubt that many of us could have kept that cool under pressure. Thank goodness you are okay. Good luck in your future.