By KUNA
Kabul : Four suspects have been taken into custody over the attack on a luxury hotel in Kabul on Monday evening, officials here said on Tuesday.
Amrullah Saleh, chief of the National Directorate of Intelligence, told a news conference three among the dead were American nationals. He did not disclose their names and jobs in Afghanistan.
Earlier, officials confirmed the killing of only two people, both were said to be locals, in the bomb explosion followed by a shoot out inside the lobby of the luxury hotel.
However, Saleh said the number of those killed were four. Another person died of injuries in the hospital. He said three among those killed were American nationals.
The fourth casualty was a French woman while the fifth was an Afghan who was working as a security guard at the hotel, said the spy chief.
He said four suspects had been taken into custody for their links with the Taliban and involvement in the attack.
Earlier, Taliban spokesman Zabeehullah Mujahid had said that four gunmen had entered the hotel and they had returned safely from there.
Saleh accused Taliban commander Sirajuddin and said the militant leader was presently living on the other side of the Durand Line, the border between Afghanistan and Pakistan.
He said one of the four detainees was a would-be suicide bomber. However, he failed to carry out a suicide attack for unknown reasons. He did not disclose their names.