American University of Afghanistan attack
| American University of Afghanistan attack | |
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| Part of the War in Afghanistan (2015–present) | |
The American University of Afghanistan.
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| Location | American University of Afghanistan, Kabul, Kabul Province, Afghanistan |
| Coordinates | 34°28′32″N 69°7′34″W / 34.47556°N 69.12611°W |
| Date | 24 August 2016 Approximately 7:00 p.m. - 5:00 a.m. (UTC+04:30) |
| Target | University students & workers |
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Attack type
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Car bombings, shootings, school shooting |
| Weapons | Truck bomb, guns |
| Deaths | 16-17+ (+3 attackers) |
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Non-fatal injuries
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53+ |
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Suspected perpetrators
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Taliban are the main suspect, with the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant also being a susect |
| Defenders |
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On 24 August 2016, attackers who are suspected members of the Taliban stormed the American University of Afghanistan in Kabul, Afghanistan using a car bomb and automatic weapons. Sixteen to at least seventeen people were killed, including eight university students, three policemen, three security guards at the university, and two university professors. Fifty to at least 53 people were injured, some critically. Three of the attackers were killed by Afghan Special Forces. This was the first direct attack on the university, although in the past related attacks have left 21 people dead and two people kidnapped.
Afghanistan had been experiencing a significant amount of terror attacks during the War in Afghanistan (2015–present), including the large July 2016 Kabul bombing. In the past, incidents related to employees at the American University of Afghanistan include a terrorist attack in which around 21 people were killed, including two employees, and a kidnapping of two foreign professors by men dressed in Afghan National Police uniforms on August 7. American special forces later failed in an operation to try and rescue them.
The American University of Afghanistan was chartered in 2004 and established in 2006. It is an "Independent, self-governing, not-for-profit university operating on the US liberal arts model". It is Afghanistan's "top institution for higher education" with many foreign employees. It was started by Dr. Sharif Fayez and is supported by many prominent American politicians.
The attack began at 19:03 during the evening classes at the university, when around 700 students were in attendance. The university was surrounded by a fortified wall. A truck filled with explosives was driven up to the wall and blown up, leaving a large hole in the wall. Two assailants then entered the compound, prompting employees and students to panic while fleeing and hiding. A nearly ten-hour-long siege then ensued, which lasted overnight. Hundreds of trapped students "pleaded for help" as an explosion followed gunshots, some sending messages on Twitter. Students used "furniture" in the classroom to barricade doors, with others making a "mad scramble to escape through windows" while pushing each other out, some from dangerous heights.
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Wikipedia