Multiple news agencies are reporting that American University in Kabul is under attack by armed militants. Students are tweeting that they are trapped inside campus buildings and hearing explosions and gunfire.
The New York Times reports that an explosion near the school preceded the gunfire:
Ahmad Jawad, a police officer at the site of the attack, said a car bomb exploded in front of a school for the blind, which is next to the American University. He said that the attackers had entered that school, and were firing at the American University from there.
Massoud Hossaini, an Associated Press photographer, has tweeted that he is among those trapped in the attack.
Ahmad Mukhtar, a journalist in Kabul, said he managed to escape, but other people remain trapped.
Afghan security forces are reportedly on the scene and exchanging gunfire with the attackers. Some reports are claiming the attackers were members of the Taliban. That is unconfirmed.
American University is heavily guarded, with a high wall and multiple checkpoints around the campus. It closed briefly earlier this month after two professors were kidnapped just outside the wall, one American and one Australian. The professors have not been found and it’s still unknown who their abductors were.
Update, 4:10 p.m.:
The Los Angeles Times is reporting that at least one person has died and 26 were wounded in the attack. About 40 more students managed to escape.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated.