Deadly standoff ends at Afghan hotel; hostages freed after several hours June 22, 2012 -- Updated 1054 GMT (1854 HKT) NEW: All militants are killed, the police chief says NEW: Militants kill 15 civilians, a police officer and three security guards, he says Kabul, Afghanistan (CNN) -- Taliban militants attacked a hotel near Kabul on Friday and seized dozens of hostages, sparking a fierce gunbattle with Afghan and NATO troops that left 26 people dead, authorities said. The standoff, which lasted 11 hours, ended with the deaths of all seven militants, police said. The militants killed 15 civilians, a police officer and three security guards, Kabul police chief Ayoub Salangi said. By the end of the siege, police had rescued all the remaining 50 civilians held hostage in the hotel, according to Salangi. Earlier, he had said that there were five militants, but revised the number as more details emerged. Police said they found burqas in the vehicle the attackers used to bring in explosives to the hotel, an indication that some were dressed as women. A burqa is an outer garment worn by Muslim women to cover their bodies. Terrified civilians fled when the gunmen struck the Spozhmai hotel around midnight Thursday local time, with some jumping into a nearby lake to avoid the bloodshed. The hotel was hosting an outdoor dinner that drew a large number of guests when the attack occurred. Afghan forces had moved slowly overnight to avoid civilian casualties. "We did not take any action in the dark because of the risk to civilians," Salangi said. There was no immediate indication of coalition forces casualties, NATO's International Security Assistance Force said. The attack follows recent strikes aimed at coalition troops and Afghan security forces. Bombings in two eastern provinces Wednesday killed at least 29 people, including three American soldiers. It also comes nearly a year after an insurgent attack on Kabul's Hotel Inter-Continental killed nine attackers and 12 others. Taliban spokesman Zabiullah Mujahid said the hotel attack targeted Westerners. Attackers are armed with suicide vests, rocket-propelled grenades and heavy machine guns, he said in an e-mail while the siege was under way. He said the Taliban fought government forces outside the hotel and had killed tens of government officials and foreigners, but the insurgents regularly inflate casualty figures. The Taliban, an Islamic fundamentalist militia, once ruled most of the country. June 22, 2012 -- Updated 0829 GMT (1629 HKT) Ai Weiwei's probation period may have ended, but the renowned artist and dissident is pessimistic about his case -- and the future of China. June 21, 2012 -- Updated 1257 GMT (2057 HKT) WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange is not the first to seek an escape route through a diplomatic mission. Who else has sought asylum? June 21, 2012 -- Updated 1614 GMT (0014 HKT) When the fastest men on the planet contest the Olympic 100m final, it will be a major upset if the winner does not come from Jamaica. Greece's traditional political system led to the financial crisis and made it harder to reform, says Pavlos Tsimas -- but a new start offers hope.