Video: Fierce Firefight Around Kabul Embassy

Intense raw video has been released from the 20-hour firefight yesterday near the U.S. Embassy and NATO headquarters in Kabul.

The video shows U.S. and Afghan soldiers taking up firing positions, running to cover, and at one point, ducking down to avoid an incoming rocket fire, yelling “RPG Get down!”

There is also a short clip of a helicopter gunship firing into the construction site which was  where the insurgent shooters set up for and conducted the assault.

In the aftermath, Seddiq Seddiqui of the Afghan Interior Ministry spoke to cameramen, saying nine terrorists were involved in the attack, and that all of them had been neutralized as of this morning in Kabul.

U.S. Ambassador Ryan Crocker also made a statement to the press, in which he claimed that the attack was “not Tet” referring to the infamous North Vietnamese operation, and stated his belief that the attacks on the Embassy were futile and therefore proved the weakness of the insurgents.

You can watch the full, pulse-pounding video here, courtesy of the Associated Press:

As of this morning in the U.S., Ambassador Ryan Crocker publicly blamed the Pakistan-based Haqqani network for the attacks. No U.S. or NATO personnel were injured, but six Afghans were killed.

Amb. Crocker said the attacks will not affect efforts to transition primary security responsibility to Afghan forces.

All foreign forces are scheduled to be out of Afghanistan by 2014.