Afghanistan’s Taliban authorities took over administration of Kabul’s famed Serena resort on Saturday, a resort assertion mentioned, a luxurious property focused by Taliban assaults throughout their insurgency.
The Kabul Serena Lodge was run for practically 20 years by the Aga Khan Fund for Financial Growth within the Afghan capital and was fashionable with enterprise travellers and overseas visitors.
“Kabul Serena Lodge shall be closing its operations efficient February 01, 2025,” a press release from Serena on Friday evening mentioned.
Lodge operations at the moment are dealt with by the Lodge State Owned Company (HSOC), the assertion added.
“Since opening in 2005, Kabul Serena Lodge has been an integral a part of Kabul’s social material, an iconic presence within the metropolis, and a logo of our unwavering dedication to the folks of Afghanistan,” the assertion mentioned.
Taliban authorities spokesmen didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark and AFP journalists weren’t allowed onto the property on Saturday morning.
On Saturday, the resort’s web site solely confirmed the assertion in regards to the handover and Kabul has been faraway from the Serena model’s record of locations.
The Switzerland-based organisation additionally didn’t reply to AFP requests for remark.
The Serena has been the goal of a number of lethal assaults by the Taliban earlier than they swept to energy in 2021, ousting the foreign-backed authorities.
In 2014, simply weeks earlier than a presidential election, 4 teenage gunmen with pistols hidden of their socks managed to penetrate a number of layers of safety, killing 9 folks, together with an AFP journalist and members of his household.
In 2008, a suicide bombing left six useless, in an assault blamed on the present Taliban inside minister, Sirajuddin Haqqani.
In 2021, the US and Britain warned their residents to keep away from motels in Afghanistan, singling out the Serena, underlining the shaky safety state of affairs within the aftermath of the Taliban takeover.
Within the years since their return to energy, nonetheless, the Taliban authorities have labored to draw tourism to Afghanistan, touting a return to safety.
