Visitors to an upmarket Kabul hotel attacked by Taliban gunmen have described glaring security breaches before the assailants went on a bloody rampage targeting guests, in a city constantly under threat.

Bags were not checked, scanners did not work and body searches were non-existent, according to witnesses, as the private company providing security to the state-owned Intercontinental Hotel comes under the spotlight.

The 12-hour attack overnight Saturday killed at least 22 people, the majority of them foreigners, including citizens from Venezuela, the Ukraine, Germany and Kazakhstan. A number of Americans were also among the dead and wounded, a State Department official said Tuesday.&nbsp;

The hotel &mdash; its long white facade blackened by smoke &mdash; was still barred to journalists Tuesday, two days after the assault ended.

Authorities are investigating how the six militants were able to slip past Kabul Balkh Safety &amp; Security (KBSS) guards and launch the assault with guns and grenades.&nbsp;

A witness and a security source said that at least two of the gunmen were armed and inside the hotel, before the attack began, and questions have been raised &mdash; including by the country`s interior minister &mdash; over whether the militants had inside help.

An AFP reporter and driver visited the landmark 1960s building on a hilltop overlooking the Afghan capital on Saturday, hours before the assault began.

They described cursory security checks by KBSS, accounts confirmed by other recent visitors.&nbsp;

&quot;We were told the scanning machines were not working today,&quot; said telecom executive Aziz Tayeb, who hid behind a pillar during the assault.&nbsp;

&quot;I also didn`t see any armed guard in the scan room just before you enter the building or inside,&quot; he said, adding his bags were not searched.&nbsp;

&quot;In the past two weeks, I went to the hotel with my family twice. Out of the three or four checkpoints before the main entrance, only one of them checked our car. We were not even body-searched,&quot; Ahmad Shafi, a frequent visitor, told AFP.

An AFP driver said that when he arrived at the first checkpoint around 9:30 am Saturday, the hotel guard casually asked him: &quot;Do you have a gun?&quot;

The driver replied &quot;No&quot; and was waved through.&nbsp;

At a second checkpoint, guards looked for magnetic bombs on the car using a mirror and sniffer dog, he said.

A few metres from the hotel lobby the AFP reporter was checked with a handheld metal detector. It is unclear if the baggage scanning machine was working at the time. No armed guards were seen in the immediate vicinity of the hotel.The New York Times quoted a general with the Crisis Response Unit, which response to frequent Taliban attacks on urban centres, as saying he believed at least three attackers had been inside the hotel for long enough to familiarise themselves with its layout and even bring in equipment.&nbsp;

KBSS declined a request for comment. In a statement, the company said it would do &quot;everything in its power&quot; to cooperate with the investigation.&nbsp;

KBSS, which took over hotel security three weeks ago, was formed in 2004 and lists the United Nations and the European Union as among its clients.

A security source told AFP that KBSS has responsibility for protecting the complex only, with its guards not allowed inside the hotel under a contract he said had been signed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani.&nbsp; 
They were also not allowed to search VIPs, he said.&nbsp;

Witnesses have said the guards fled during the attack, though the security source denied that.

The attack followed security warnings in recent days to avoid locations frequented by foreigners in war-torn Kabul.

Witnesses have said the guards fled during the attack, though the security source denied that

Visitors to an upmarket Kabul hotel attacked by Taliban gunmen have described glaring security breaches before the assailants went on a bloody rampage targeting guests, in a city constantly under threat. Bags were not checked, scanners did not work and body searches were non-existent, according to witnesses, as the private company providing security to the state-owned Intercontinental Hotel comes under the spotlight. The 12-hour attack overnight Saturday killed at least 22 people, the majority of them foreigners, including citizens from Venezuela, the Ukraine, Germany and Kazakhstan. A number of Americans were also among the dead and wounded, a State Department official said Tuesday. The hotel — its long white facade blackened by smoke — was still barred to journalists Tuesday, two days after the assault ended. Authorities are investigating how the six militants were able to slip past Kabul Balkh Safety & Security (KBSS) guards and launch the assault with guns and grenades. A witness and a security source said that at least two of the gunmen were armed and inside the hotel, before the attack began, and questions have been raised — including by the country`s interior minister — over whether the militants had inside help. An AFP reporter and driver visited the landmark 1960s building on a hilltop overlooking the Afghan capital on Saturday, hours before the assault began. They described cursory security checks by KBSS, accounts confirmed by other recent visitors. "We were told the scanning machines were not working today," said telecom executive Aziz Tayeb, who hid behind a pillar during the assault. "I also didn`t see any armed guard in the scan room just before you enter the building or inside," he said, adding his bags were not searched. "In the past two weeks, I went to the hotel with my family twice. Out of the three or four checkpoints before the main entrance, only one of them checked our car. We were not even body-searched," Ahmad Shafi, a frequent visitor, told AFP. An AFP driver said that when he arrived at the first checkpoint around 9:30 am Saturday, the hotel guard casually asked him: "Do you have a gun?" The driver replied "No" and was waved through. At a second checkpoint, guards looked for magnetic bombs on the car using a mirror and sniffer dog, he said. A few metres from the hotel lobby the AFP reporter was checked with a handheld metal detector. It is unclear if the baggage scanning machine was working at the time. No armed guards were seen in the immediate vicinity of the hotel.The New York Times quoted a general with the Crisis Response Unit, which response to frequent Taliban attacks on urban centres, as saying he believed at least three attackers had been inside the hotel for long enough to familiarise themselves with its layout and even bring in equipment. KBSS declined a request for comment. In a statement, the company said it would do "everything in its power" to cooperate with the investigation. KBSS, which took over hotel security three weeks ago, was formed in 2004 and lists the United Nations and the European Union as among its clients. A security source told AFP that KBSS has responsibility for protecting the complex only, with its guards not allowed inside the hotel under a contract he said had been signed by Afghan President Ashraf Ghani. They were also not allowed to search VIPs, he said. Witnesses have said the guards fled during the attack, though the security source denied that. The attack followed security warnings in recent days to avoid locations frequented by foreigners in war-torn Kabul.

Kabul hotel guests describe lax security before deadly attack

The attack on the Kabul Intercontinental Hotel continues, reporters at the site have told WION.&nbsp;

The reporters, stationed outside the hotel, said the sound of gunfire and explosions could still be heard from inside. It is thought two attackers are still within the premises.&nbsp;

Afghanistan&#39;s Interior Ministry has said earlier on Sunday that the attack on the hotel was over.&nbsp;

The interior ministry had said then that three attackers had been killed, and that 126 people, including 41 foreigners, had been rescued.&nbsp;

It added that five civilians had been killed and six wounded.&nbsp;

The Taliban however, which has now taken responsibility for the attack, has said there were five attackers involved. If that is correct, that means two gunmen are still somewhere inside the hotel premise.&nbsp;

Media outlets are now also reporting the death toll as six, not five. The sixth victim they are saying is a foreigner -- a woman.&nbsp;

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/at-least-five-dead-in-kabul-hotel-attack-afghan-spy-agency-30204" target="_blank">At least 5 dead in Kabul hotel attack, 100 hostages rescued</a>

Also read: <a href="http://www.wionews.com/south-asia/kabuls-intercontinental-hotel-under-attack-by-at-least-four-gunmen-30184" target="_blank">Kabul&#39;s Intercontinental Hotel under attack &#39;by at least four gunmen&#39;</a>

The attackers had barged into the hotel on Saturday night, which was due to host an IT conference today.&nbsp;

&quot;Four attackers are inside the building,&quot; an official at the National Directorate of Security (NDS) spy agency told AFP at the beginning of the attack. They are &quot;shooting at guests&quot;, he said.

Hotel guests inside, speaking to people outside, said they saw scenes of celebration turn into a chaotic nightmare in a minute. And that they saw people running in terror, some of them falling as they got hit by bullets.&nbsp;

News reports had quoted a number of guests saying over the phone that were hiding in their rooms, and begging the security services to come rescue them. Later, the reports said, they found the guests&#39; phones switched off.&nbsp;

Special forces were early Sunday morning dropped onto the roof of the luxury hotel by helicopter.&nbsp;

By late Sunday morning, thick black smoke was billowing out of parts of the hotel.&nbsp;

The Taliban had also attacked the Intercontinental in 2011.&nbsp;

Afghanistan's Interior Ministry had said earlier that the siege was over and that three attackers had been killed

The attack on the Kabul Intercontinental Hotel continues, reporters at the site have told WION. The reporters, stationed outside the hotel, said the sound of gunfire and explosions could still be heard from inside. It is thought two attackers are still within the premises. Afghanistan's Interior Ministry has said earlier on Sunday that the attack on the hotel was over. The interior ministry had said then that three attackers had been killed, and that 126 people, including 41 foreigners, had been rescued. It added that five civilians had been killed and six wounded. The Taliban however, which has now taken responsibility for the attack, has said there were five attackers involved. If that is correct, that means two gunmen are still somewhere inside the hotel premise. Media outlets are now also reporting the death toll as six, not five. The sixth victim they are saying is a foreigner -- a woman. Also read: At least 5 dead in Kabul hotel attack, 100 hostages rescued Also read: Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel under attack 'by at least four gunmen' The attackers had barged into the hotel on Saturday night, which was due to host an IT conference today. "Four attackers are inside the building," an official at the National Directorate of Security (NDS) spy agency told AFP at the beginning of the attack. They are "shooting at guests", he said. Hotel guests inside, speaking to people outside, said they saw scenes of celebration turn into a chaotic nightmare in a minute. And that they saw people running in terror, some of them falling as they got hit by bullets. News reports had quoted a number of guests saying over the phone that were hiding in their rooms, and begging the security services to come rescue them. Later, the reports said, they found the guests' phones switched off. Special forces were early Sunday morning dropped onto the roof of the luxury hotel by helicopter. By late Sunday morning, thick black smoke was billowing out of parts of the hotel. The Taliban had also attacked the Intercontinental in 2011.

Kabul hotel attack continues, now in its 17th hour

As gunmen went on a night-time rampage through <a href="http://www.wionews.com/world/gunfire-and-explosions-rock-kabul-hotel-as-siege-draws-to-an-end-30232" target="_blank">Kabul&#39;s Intercontinental Hotel</a> on Saturday, Aziz Tayeb posted a desperate plea on Facebook: &quot;Pray for me. I may die.&quot;&nbsp;

The telecom executive hid behind a pillar as four heavily-armed attackers stormed the luxury hotel and began spraying terrified guests and staff with bullets.&nbsp;

At least six people were killed, including a foreigner, and eight wounded in the 12-hour ordeal as the attackers engaged in a fierce gunfight with Afghan security forces.&nbsp;

&quot;I saw people who were enjoying themselves a second ago screaming and fleeing like crazy, and some of them falling down, hit by bullets,&quot; Tayeb told AFP on Sunday, hours after his traumatic experience ended.

One colleague, who had been stuck on the fifth floor of the six-storey building throughout the attack, told Tayeb that some areas of the hotel resembled a butcher&#39;s shop with blood everywhere.&nbsp;&nbsp;

The attackers were eventually killed.&nbsp;

Tayeb, a regional director for Afghan Telecom in the western city of Herat, was staying at the hilltop hotel -- not part of the global InterContinental chain -- with dozens of industry colleagues from around the country ahead of an annual conference due to begin on Sunday.

The gunmen shot at people who had been enjoying dinner in one of the hotel restaurants before breaking into guest rooms and taking dozens of hostages including foreigners, witnesses said. 
Tayeb and a few friends managed to escape to the hotel&#39;s outdoor pool area where they hid, listening to the horrifying attack metres away.&nbsp;

&quot;I could repeatedly hear blasts one after another, hand grenades, they used many grenades,&quot; he said, his voice heavy with exhaustion.

&quot;We contacted security officials who arrived an hour later and as we were being escorted out I saw five or six bodies outside the hotel.

&quot;The second, third and fifth floors were on fire -- the fifth floor was engulfed in flames.&quot;&nbsp;

Once he was a safe distance from the hotel, Tayeb called his colleagues still trapped inside the burning building.&nbsp;

&quot;Some were crying that they would die of smoke inhalation,&quot; he said.

Dramatic television footage from Afghanistan&#39;s Tolo News showed people trapped on balconies at the top of the building climbing down bedsheets to escape, with at least one losing his grip and falling.

Security staff fled

A witness told AFP that the hotel&#39;s security team fled &quot;without a fight&quot;, leaving guests to their fate.

&quot;They didn&#39;t attack. They didn&#39;t do anything to them. They had no experience,&quot; said the 24-year-old man, a hotel employee who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity.

He ran from the hotel with some of them, he said. &quot;I was asking them, where should I go?&quot;

An interior ministry spokesman has confirmed to AFP that the hotel&#39;s security had been taken over by a private company just three weeks earlier. No hotel official was immediately able to comment.&nbsp;

As he waited for news of his colleagues, Tayeb updated his Facebook status to thank his friends for their prayers.

&quot;Staying alive in this country is a mere coincidence,&quot; he wrote, before making another plea.&nbsp;

&quot;More than a 100 of my colleagues and friends are caught between life and death. Please pray for them.&quot;

It was too late for one of them: the interior ministry confirmed at least one person involved in the conference was among the dead.

At least six people were killed, including a foreigner, and eight wounded in the 12-hour ordeal as the attackers engaged in a fierce gunfight with Afghan security forces

As gunmen went on a night-time rampage through Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel on Saturday, Aziz Tayeb posted a desperate plea on Facebook: "Pray for me. I may die." The telecom executive hid behind a pillar as four heavily-armed attackers stormed the luxury hotel and began spraying terrified guests and staff with bullets. At least six people were killed, including a foreigner, and eight wounded in the 12-hour ordeal as the attackers engaged in a fierce gunfight with Afghan security forces. "I saw people who were enjoying themselves a second ago screaming and fleeing like crazy, and some of them falling down, hit by bullets," Tayeb told AFP on Sunday, hours after his traumatic experience ended. One colleague, who had been stuck on the fifth floor of the six-storey building throughout the attack, told Tayeb that some areas of the hotel resembled a butcher's shop with blood everywhere. The attackers were eventually killed. Tayeb, a regional director for Afghan Telecom in the western city of Herat, was staying at the hilltop hotel -- not part of the global InterContinental chain -- with dozens of industry colleagues from around the country ahead of an annual conference due to begin on Sunday. The gunmen shot at people who had been enjoying dinner in one of the hotel restaurants before breaking into guest rooms and taking dozens of hostages including foreigners, witnesses said. Tayeb and a few friends managed to escape to the hotel's outdoor pool area where they hid, listening to the horrifying attack metres away. "I could repeatedly hear blasts one after another, hand grenades, they used many grenades," he said, his voice heavy with exhaustion. "We contacted security officials who arrived an hour later and as we were being escorted out I saw five or six bodies outside the hotel. "The second, third and fifth floors were on fire -- the fifth floor was engulfed in flames." Once he was a safe distance from the hotel, Tayeb called his colleagues still trapped inside the burning building. "Some were crying that they would die of smoke inhalation," he said. Dramatic television footage from Afghanistan's Tolo News showed people trapped on balconies at the top of the building climbing down bedsheets to escape, with at least one losing his grip and falling. Security staff fled A witness told AFP that the hotel's security team fled "without a fight", leaving guests to their fate. "They didn't attack. They didn't do anything to them. They had no experience," said the 24-year-old man, a hotel employee who spoke to AFP on condition of anonymity. He ran from the hotel with some of them, he said. "I was asking them, where should I go?" An interior ministry spokesman has confirmed to AFP that the hotel's security had been taken over by a private company just three weeks earlier. No hotel official was immediately able to comment. As he waited for news of his colleagues, Tayeb updated his Facebook status to thank his friends for their prayers. "Staying alive in this country is a mere coincidence," he wrote, before making another plea. "More than a 100 of my colleagues and friends are caught between life and death. Please pray for them." It was too late for one of them: the interior ministry confirmed at least one person involved in the conference was among the dead.

'Pray for me': Kabul hotel guest's plea during bloody siege

Explosions and heavy gunfire rocked Kabul&#39;s Intercontinental Hotel as Afghan Special Forces moved through each floor fighting surviving gunmen who attacked the hotel a day earlier, killing at least five people.

Security personnel waved Afghan flags on the rooftop of the hotel to signal they had cleared and secured the building, ending the siege which started on Saturday (January 20) night and lasted 13 hours.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack which saw more than 150 guests flee. The raid came just days after a U.S. embassy warning of possible attacks on hotels in Kabul.

Witnesses said the gunmen were dressed in army uniforms, but it was unclear how many were involved. The government said three gunmen were killed while witnesses said four were involved and the Taliban said five.

The Intercontinental Hotel, an imposing 1960s structure set on a hilltop and heavily protected like most public buildings in Kabul, was previously attacked by Taliban fighters in 2011. While it shares the same name, the hotel in Kabul is not part of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which issued a statement in 2011 saying that &quot;the hotel Inter-continental in Kabul is not part of IHG and has not been since 1980&quot;.

The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack which saw more than 150 guests flee.

Explosions and heavy gunfire rocked Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel as Afghan Special Forces moved through each floor fighting surviving gunmen who attacked the hotel a day earlier, killing at least five people. Security personnel waved Afghan flags on the rooftop of the hotel to signal they had cleared and secured the building, ending the siege which started on Saturday (January 20) night and lasted 13 hours. The Taliban claimed responsibility for the attack which saw more than 150 guests flee. The raid came just days after a U.S. embassy warning of possible attacks on hotels in Kabul. Witnesses said the gunmen were dressed in army uniforms, but it was unclear how many were involved. The government said three gunmen were killed while witnesses said four were involved and the Taliban said five. The Intercontinental Hotel, an imposing 1960s structure set on a hilltop and heavily protected like most public buildings in Kabul, was previously attacked by Taliban fighters in 2011. While it shares the same name, the hotel in Kabul is not part of InterContinental Hotels Group (IHG), which issued a statement in 2011 saying that "the hotel Inter-continental in Kabul is not part of IHG and has not been since 1980".

Gunfire and explosions rock Kabul hotel as siege draws to an end

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Kabul hotel guests describe lax security before deadly attack

Kabul hotel attack continues, now in its 17th hour

'Pray for me': Kabul hotel guest's plea during bloody siege

Gunfire and explosions rock Kabul hotel as siege draws to an end