Carsten Thomassen (15 May 1969 – 14 January 2008) was a respected Norwegian journalist, political commentator and war correspondent for the Norwegian daily newspaper Dagbladet. He had earlier covered the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake from Thailand and Indonesia. He was killed in the 2008 Kabul Serena Hotel attack in Kabul, Afghanistan.
On 14 January 2008, Thomassen was covering Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre's visit to Kabul. Støre an...
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Carsten Thomassen (15 May 1969 – 14 January 2008) was a respected Norwegian journalist, political commentator and war correspondent for the Norwegian daily newspaper Dagbladet. He had earlier covered the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake from Thailand and Indonesia. He was killed in the 2008 Kabul Serena Hotel attack in Kabul, Afghanistan.
On 14 January 2008, Thomassen was covering Norwegian Foreign Minister Jonas Gahr Støre's visit to Kabul. Støre and his entourage were staying in the Serena Hotel, as were several foreign reporters and diplomats. While Thomassen was waiting to meet Støre in the lobby, at least two Talibani terrorists forced their way into the Serena Hotel by killing the guards posted outside the main entrance using hand grenades. At least one of the terrorists was dressed in an Afghan police uniform, which may have delayed the reaction of the PST bodyguards inside the hotel.
Thomassen was wounded in the arm, leg and stomach. Once the firing died down, he received first...
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