CHRONOLOGY: Attacks in the Afghan capital

KABUL – A commando-style suicide raid on Afghanistan’s top hotel, frequented by foreigners and diplomats, shows a new style of Taliban attack aimed at soft civilian targets, diplomats and analysts said on Tuesday.

In the past year, the hardline Islamist group has killed at least 200 civilians in more than 140 suicide attacks throughout the country in a campaign to oust the pro-Western Afghan government and drive out foreign troops.

Here is a timeline showing some of the attacks in and around the capital in the past six months.

June 17, 2007: A Taliban suicide bomber blows up a police bus, killing 24 people and wounding dozens.

August 15: A roadside bomb kills three German embassy bodyguards just outside the city.

September 29: In the worst suicide bombing so far in Kabul, a suicide bomb attack on an army bus kills 28 Afghan troops and two civilians. The Taliban claims responsibility.

October 2: At least 11 civilians and police officers are killed in a suicide bomb attack on a bus carrying Afghan police.

October 6: A suicide car bomb kills five Afghan civilians and a U.S. soldier on a road near Kabul airport.

Nov 24: A suicide bomber kills nine civilians, six of them children, and an Italian soldier at the opening of a new bridge on the outskirts of the capital.

November 27: Two civilians are killed by a suicide bomb targeting a U.S. security convoy outside a Defence Ministry building.

December 4: A NATO convoy is hit by a suicide attack near Kabul airport. A Taliban spokesman says the blast, which wounds 22 Afghans, was meant to “welcome” U.S. Defense Secretary Robert Gates.

December 5: A suicide bomber kills 13 people in an a rush-hour attack on a bus carrying Afghan army personnel in southwestern Kabul.

January 14, 2008: Attackers set off suicide bombs and open fire on guests in the luxury Serena Hotel. At least one guard is killed outside, and inside up to three Americans, a Frenchwoman and a Norwegian journalist are also killed. Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere, staying at the hotel, is safe. The Taliban claims responsibility for the attack.