CNN Newsroom | Hamid Karzai Survives Assassination Attempt

RICK SANCHEZ (CNN Anchor): An elected head of state survives this assassination attempt today. President Hamid Karzai and the video is incredible out of Afghanistan. He's alive, but three people who were near him this morning are not. Whoever tried to kill him timed it perfectly to make a statement. It was a celebration of Afghan history, progress and pride at the time in Kabul. . .

Peter, people will be watching this at home and asking if the Afghanis cannot even protect their president from potential assassination. What does it say about their control of the government there?

PETER BERGEN (CNN Terrorism Analyst, and New America Foundation's Schwartz Senior Fellow): Well, Rick, it's only says something about the ability of the Taliban to penetrate Kabul. And we're seeing not only this attempt against Hamid Karzai, we've also seen in the last several months an attack on a major five-star hotel in Kabul that kill an American and other westerners.

And basically, what the Taliban is trying to do is just set to say, look, we have the ability to mount operations in Kabul. . .

And this attack, as you know, Rick, took place on a major celebration in Afghanistan. Independence celebration from the communists. There was a great deal of security in place and in anticipation of this. But clearly, the Taliban were able to penetrate this security.

SANCHEZ: After hundreds and hundreds of billions of dollars spent, Americans would like to know if the situation in Afghanistan is as difficult as the situation in Iraq, Peter.

What would you tell them? Is it better? Is it the same? Is it worse?

PETER BERGEN: It's certainly nothing like Iraq, Rick. I mean, in Iraq we've seen something like 920 suicide attacks just in the last five years. Which have killed more than 10,000 people. In Afghanistan by contrast we're seeing suicide attacks going up pretty sharply, but the total would be surprising. It wouldn't be more than 200-plus suicide attacks right now, Rick.

So the levels of violence we're seeing in Iraq is nothing like we're seeing in Afghanistan. However, that being said, the situation in Afghanistan certainly in the last two years has gone from not particularly good to something that looks a little bit like today, which is something that raises some serious questions about security. Not just in Afghanistan but in the capital city itself.

SANCHEZ: Peter Bergen, important, comparative analysis that you bring us. Thank you for being with us on this really busy news night.