Gunmen have killed at least five people and wounded eight others in an ongoing attack on Kabul's Intercontinental Hotel.
Photo from video
More than eleven hours after the assault began Afghan security forces were still clearing the hotel, with at least one of the four gunmen involved on the loose, a security source said.
"Five are dead," an official with the Afghan spy said, adding that a hundred hostages have been released.
Dramatic images broadcast on Afghanistan's Tolo News showed thick black smoke and flames billowing from the top of the six-floor hotel.
Several people could be seen climbing over a top-floor balcony using bedsheets to escape, with one losing his grip and plunging to the ground.
Four gunmen burst into the hotel on Saturday night, opening fire on guests and staff and taking dozens of people hostage, including foreigners.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the latest assault in the war-torn Afghan capital that followed a series of security warnings in recent days to avoid hotels and other locations frequented by foreigners.
It is not clear how many people are still inside the hotel, which was previously attacked by Taliban militants in 2011.
During the night special forces were lowered by helicopters onto the roof of the landmark hotel, interior ministry deputy spokesman Nasrat Rahimi said earlier, adding two attackers had been killed.
