Up to five people have been killed in a feared terror attack on a television station in the capital of Afghanistan, with several journalists reportedly being held hostage inside.
Gunmen set off explosives at the gate of Shamshad TV in Kabul on Tuesday morning, and stormed in while firing rocket propelled grenades at security guards.
Shooting has since continued, with gunshots being heard from inside the building every few minutes, as armed security forces surround the station.
Terror: A video filmed from outside the building shows Afghan security forces swarming around the building where armed gunmen are holding journalists hostage
Members of staff, who remain inside the building, report that between two and five people appear to have been killed by the attackers.
Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said casualties were feared but he said the number was still unclear.
‘I saw three attackers on security cameras entering the TV station building. They first shot the guard and then entered the building. They started throwing grenades and firing,’ Shamshad TV reporter Faisal Zaland, who escaped through a back door, told AFP.
‘Many of my colleagues are still in the building,’ he added.
‘A group of armed men have entered the building and security forces are fighting them,’ Kabul police spokesman Basir Mujahid said.
Staff at Shamshad TV, who remain inside the building, report that between two and five people appear to have been killed by the attackers
‘The security forces have been able to rescue a large number of Shamshad TV staff. Initial information on casualties shows at least one guard has lost his life.’
Interior ministry spokesman Najib Danish said as many as three attackers were involved in the assault.
‘The security forces have been able to bring one down and the operation is ongoing,’ Mr Danish said, adding that ‘most’ staff have been rescued.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility in the attack, but in a Twitter statement the Taliban swiftly denied it was involved.
Kabul has been rocked by a series of deadly attacks in recent weeks as the Taliban and Islamic State insurgents step up offensives against security installations and mosques.
Violence against Afghan journalists surged in the first half of 2017, a media watchdog said in July.
Attackers: At least three men are said to have been involved in storming the building on Tuesday morning, and up to five people may be dead inside
Last year the country suffered its deadliest year on record for journalists, according to AJSC, with at least 13 media workers killed – 10 by the Taliban. That made it the second most dangerous place for reporters in the world after Syria.
In January last year, seven employees of popular TV channel Tolo, which is often critical of the insurgents, were killed in a Taliban suicide bombing in Kabul in what the militant group said was revenge for ‘spreading propaganda’ against them.
It was the first major attack on an Afghan media organisation since the Taliban were ousted from power in 2001, and spotlighted the dangers faced by media workers in Afghanistan as the security situation worsens.
Security in Kabul has been ramped up since a May 31 truck bomb exploded on the edge of the so-called ‘Green Zone’, killing around 150 people and wounding 400 others.
That attack also caused extensive damage to 1TV, a private news channel located close to the bombing site. In an act of defiance, the news channel managed to resume operations within a few hours.
Special truck scanners, barriers and permanent and mobile checkpoints have been rolled out across the city since the May bombing.
But a suicide bomber struck again in Kabul’s heavily fortified diplomatic quarter last week, killing at least five people, showing that militants can still hit the heart of the city despite tighter security.