Kabul TV station comes under attack

KABUL: A private television station in Afghan capital Kabul came under attack on Tuesday by at least two men who broke into the building after an explosion, citing a security official Reuters reported.

One of the attackers was killed by guards while another fought off security forces with hand grenades, the official said.

As the attack unfolded, Shamshad TV, a Pashto language broadcaster, stopped normal programming, transmitting only a still image.

There was no immediate indication of casualties or the identity of the attackers but Taliban insurgents issued an immediate denial that they were involved.

An employee of the television station told AFP that many staff members were still in the building, describing the attack as ongoing.

“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,” said Shamshad TV reporter Faisal Zaland, who escaped through a back door.

Zaland told AFP that security forces were in the area of the Shamshad compound in the Afghan capital “trying to bring down the attackers”.

“Many of my colleagues are still in the building,” he added.

The attack is the latest in a series of assaults on Afghan journalists and media workers. Last year seven members of Afghanistan’s largest private television station, Tolo, were killed by a Taliban suicide bomber.