Suicide bomber, gunmen attack Indian consulate in Jalalabad

The Indian consulate was attacked by at least one suicide bomber and heavily armed gunment in a nearby building

India's Consulate in Afghanistan's Jalalabad city was attacked today with a suicide bomber blowing himself up during the terror strike but all Indians at the mission were safe, Indian foreign office said.

One local staff sustained minor injuries in the attack, nearly two months after a similar assault was carried out by terrorists on the Indian mission in Mazar-i-Sharif in January.

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"Indian Consulate in Jalalabad has been attacked. One suicide bomber blew himself up in front of the mission. All Indians in the mission are safe while a local staff has sustained minor injuries," External Affairs Ministry Spokesperson Vikas Swarup said in New Delhi.

The Indo-Tibetan Border Police (ITBP) fired after they detected some movement and gunfire near the consulate complex at about 1:30 p.m IST, according to officials.

On January 3, heavily-armed terrorists carried out an attack on the Indian mission in Mazar-e-Sharif which lasted for over 25 hours with all the attackers who attempted to storm the building getting killed by the Afghan security forces.

Soon after that also in January, Islamic State jihadists claimed responsibility for a deadly gun and bomb siege targeting the nearby Pakistani consulate in Jalalabad.

Afghan forces have killed four militants involved in the attack. However, an exact number of attackers was not immediately known.

The combing operation is on after the attackers were killed, sources said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack.