A Taleban suicide squad broke into the only luxury hotel in Kabul last night, killing at least seven people, including an American and a Norwegian journalist, and forcing hundreds more to take shelter in a basement as a firefight raged in the lobby.

The attack, by a bomber and at least three men armed with AK47s, appeared to be the first big assault against a civilian target in the Afghan capital since a Taleban resurgence began in 2005. Witnesses described scenes of carnage inside the hotel, as American special forces entered the building in pursuit of the attackers.

Ban Ki Moon, the UN Secretary-General, said Jonas Gahr Støre, the Norwegian Foreign Minister, was the target of the attack. “They do not care whoever, whatever. This is really a serious crime against humanity,” Mr Ban told reporters.

Mr Støre, who was due to host a dinner at the heavily guarded Kabul Serena hotel, was unhurt but one of his staff was wounded and a journalist covering his visit died in hospital shortly after the explosion.

The suicide bomber blew himself up at the entrance to the hotel just after 6pm, destroying the main security gate in a blast that could be heard across the city.

More attackers throwing grenades and firing at least one rocket-propelled grenade then charged into the lobby, which was said to be peppered with bullet holes and shrapnel. There were reports last night that at least one attacker was tracked down and killed by security forces on the third floor, and foreign witnesses described seeing pools of blood and dead bodies inside the hotel.

Robert Stewart, an American guest, witnessed the attack. “They shot two or three people in the lobby and then got to the gym, where they shot three or four people,” he said. “A Filipina who was working out in the gym was shot there.”

The US State department confirmed last night that at least one American was among the dead. Most of the dead and injured were thought to be Afghans. The hotel is popular with the city’s Afghan business class and attracts foreign military guests as well as diplomats and aid workers. On its website it describes itself as: “An oasis of luxury in a war-ravaged city.”

Zabihullah Mujahed, a Taleban spokesman, contacted Afghan media outlets quickly to claim responsibility. He claimed that several of the attackers escaped, but security sources said that at least one had been shot dead. A rapid reaction force of more than 30 US soldiers in Humvees had arrived at the hotel soon after the attack.

Hans Henrik Torgensen, a Norwegian journalist on his first trip to Afghanistan, said that he was awoken by a flash outside his window from an explosion, followed by about 12 minutes of gunfire from the lobby.

He said: “Some of my Norwegian colleagues had their windows shot at from inside the hotel perimeter after the explosion. The attackers seemed to be using grenades and rocketpropelled grenades. I pulled on my helmet and body armour. I was very lucky — one of my journalist colleagues was injured and a Foreign Ministry guy was badly injured.

“One of the attackers seems to have made it up to the third floor, where he was killed by US or Afghan troops. The hotel was quickly full of US infantry and what looked like special forces. It’s been a pretty scary experience to have on your first day in Kabul.

“I went downstairs to find one of my journalist friends lying injured. He was being given medical treatment. He looked scared. One of my colleagues said he was shot at by a policeman but it is difficult to be sure what happened. Some of the attackers were said to be wearing police uniform.”

The Norwegian newspaper Dagbladet last night confirmed that their correspondent Carsten Thomassen, 38, had died of his injuries while undergoing surgery at a Czech Nato hospital near Kabul airport.

Suzanne Griffin, an American who works with the aid agency Save the Children, said that she was in the gym’s changing room when the attack started. “We heard gunfire, a lot of it. It was very close, close enough that plaster came off the ceiling,” she said, her voice shaking. “We all just got as far as we could from any glass and huddled on the floor.”

Ms Griffin, 62, of Seattle, said that staff took the women to another part of the hotel. “We had to step over a woman’s dead body. She was one of the gym people,” she said.

Hours after the attack, guests who hid in a basement or locked themselves in their rooms for hours were led away by security forces.

Zemarai Bashary, an Interior Ministry spokesman, said that six people were killed and at least six wounded. He said that there was at least one explosion after the first suicide bomber blew himself up.

Luxury at a price

— The Kabul Serena cost $35 million. Rooms cost $250 to $1,200 a night. Average government salaries are $50 a month

— The country's first escalator was installed in 2005, in a shopping mall inside a hotel

— Kabul City Centre shopping mall boasts three floors of heated shops and a cappuccino bar

— Western-led construction since the war is estimated to have reached $8 billion by 2006

Sources: CIA World Factbook; Serena Hotels; Times archives

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