19 dead after gunmen storm university campus in Afghanistan’s capital Kabul

A group of armed militants attacked Kabul University in Afghanistan on Monday morning, hours after a bomb went off in the city.

Police surrounded the campus after three gunmen entered the university compound. The intense battle between the security forces and the assailants raged for six hours, until all attackers were killed.

Local media TOLONews said there had been an explosion and gunfire erupted as Afghan and Iranian officials were formally opening a book fair jointly organized by the two nations

The Interior Ministry spokesperson, Tariq Arian, said that 19 people were dead and 12 wounded.

The outlet posted photos of students being evacuated from the campus.

A video from the scene shows people hastily walking down the street and then fleeing in panic as loud bangs are heard.

A convoy of armored vehicles, which local media said belonged to “foreign forces,” was filmed moving towards Kabul.

No militant group, including the Taliban, has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Earlier in the morning, a bomb exploded in Kabul, wounding a security serviceman and a civilian.

Last week, an SUV rigged with explosives was blown up in a different part of the city, injuring three civilians.

In September, the UN envoy for Afghanistan, Deborah Lyons, warned about the “near-record violence” that was taking place across the country, the talks between the Taliban and the Western-backed government in Kabul having stalled.

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