At least three killed in Kabul hotel attack: Taliban officials

At least three attackers have been reportedly killed by security forces after they opened fire at a Kabul hotel popular with Chinese nationals, according to a spokesperson for the Taliban-run Afghanistan administration.

The unidentified gunmen launch the attack on the multi-storey Kabul Longan Hotel on Monday, with witnesses reporting multiple blasts and several bursts of gunfire.

Smoke could be seen billowing out from the building as Taliban security forces rushed to the site and sealed off the neighbourhood.

While the firing was continuing in the hotel on Monday, a fire also broke out on one of the floors, according to witnesses.

A video posted on Twitter by a journalist in Kabul, verified by Reuters, showed smoke coming out of a multi-storey building, with one lower floor on fire.

The attack took place around 2:30 pm local time (0130 GMT) when the armed men targeted the hotel where "common people were staying", Kabul police spokesperson Khalid Zadran said, adding that forces were trying to secure the area.

The attack came a day after China's ambassador met the Afghan deputy foreign minister to discuss security-related matters and sought more attention on the security of its embassy.

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China's state-run Xinhua news agency reported that the attack took place near a Chinese guesthouse, and that its embassy in Kabul was closely monitoring the situation.

The embassy did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

The Taliban claim to have improved security since coming back to power in August last year. But there have been scores of bomb blasts and attacks, many claimed by a Daesh-inspired group.

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