Kabul: By holding Kabul's diplomatic zone
under siege for 19 hours last week, insurgents backed up by a
slick media operation again showed their skill at grabbing
headlines and drawing out news coverage.
Taliban spokesmen fed the Western press with regular text
messages during an attack which -- while claiming 15 lives, a
moderate toll for Afghanistan -- was the longest of its kind
yet, dominating international news for two days.
Afterwards, its slick "Voice of Jihad" website -- with
press releases in languages including English and a logo of
crossed swords surrounding a copy of the Koran -- carried a
detailed, though exaggerated, summary of events.
The attack, which targeted the US embassy and was linked
to the Taliban-allied Haqqani network, was the latest in the
Afghan capital to show insurgents' grasp of the Western media.
Scott Stewart of intelligence analysts Stratfor said that
the assault's planners would have known the type of weapons
used -- assault rifles and rocket-propelled grenades -- would
not seriously damage the US embassy.
"Because of that, we believe that this attack was
intended really to send a message, to be more symbolic in
nature," he said.
Many news outlets carried live, minute-by-minute accounts
during the event, combining Taliban statements with Twitter
updates from witnesses at the scene and breaking news from
official sources.
Militants also have a presence on micro-blogging website
Twitter, while supporters on Facebook post propaganda videos,
often of attacks on foreign troops.
PTI
First Published: Sunday, September 18, 2011, 14:55