Isis has claimed a deadly attack on an office used by charity Save the Children in Afghanistan.
At least two people were killed and 12 injured after suicide bombs were detonated and gunmen stormed the building in Jalalabad on Wednesday.
The claim of responsibility was made via the extremists’ media channel Amaq.
The attack began at 09.10am local time at the government building in eastern Nangarhar province with a suicide bomb, quickly followed by at least three gunmen who entered the compound.
Residents fled the area as Afghan Special Forces arrived on the scene.
“There was a blast and the target was Save the Children,” local government spokesperson Attaullah Khogyani said in a statement.
“Attackers entered the compound and the fight is going on.”
Around 50 people are believed to work in the government building for the British charity and a Swedish institution. It was not immediately clear how many people remain inside.
Picture from the scene showed a huge plume of black smoke rising into the air, burnt out vehicles and dozens of soldiers on the perimeter of the compound.
“An explosion rocked the area and right after that children and people started running away,” eyewitness Ghulam Nabi told Reuters. “I saw a vehicle catch fire and then a gunfight started.”
The violence follows a Taliban siege over the weekend of Kabul’s Intercontinental Hotel in which 22 people were killed.
Afghanistan has been engulfed by a rising wave of violence across the country since international troops withdrew in 2014.
Since then, the Taliban has managed to seize control of around 40 per cent of the country – although it hold no cities – and other militant organisations such as Isis have gained a firm foothold.
The security forces, civilians and foreigners, including aid workers, are frequently targeted in extremist attacks.
“We are devastated at the news that our Save the Children office in Jalalabad city, Afghanistan, came under attack this morning,” a Save the Children spokesperson in London said in a statement.
“Our primary concern is for the safety and security of our staff. We are awaiting further information from our team and cannot comment further at this time.”
