Terrorists are reportedly attacking the northern Indian state of Punjab leaving at least five people dead and seven others wounded, according to officials.
On Monday morning, suspected militants in army uniforms attacked a police station and fired at a bus in Gurdaspur district, which borders Pakistan.
Authorities have confirmed two police officers and three civilians were killed in the siege.
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A police officer told the Associated Press that the attackers were believed to have come from Indian-administered Kashmir, BBC reported.
Deputy Police Commissioner Abhinav Trikha said the attackers appeared to be holed up in the building’s residential quarters and were “firing continuously”.
“There were three to four attackers. They were dressed in army uniforms and came in a Maruti car,” Mr Trikha told reporters at the scene late Monday morning.
The attackers reportedly opened fire on a bus and hijacked a vehicle before storming the police station.
Local police spokesman Rajvinder Singh said he had witnessed a security officer taking a bullet during the stand-off.
”I don’t know his condition but he was immediately rushed to the hospital. The operation is on and this is still a live-operation,” Mr Singh said
Officers were exchanging gunfire with the attackers who had occupied the police barracks.
Five live bombs were recovered from nearby railway tracks but junior Home Minister Kiren Rijiju said reports the attackers were holding hostages inside the station appeared false.
“We don’t think there are any hostages. And for now, while the operation is on, it won’t be right to divulge details,” he said.
Home Minister Rajnath Singh ordered increased security on the border with Pakistan, although it remained unclear who was responsible for the attack.
Such incidents were relatively common in the disputed Kashmir region, which was divided between India and Pakistan and claimed in full by both.
But neighbouring Punjab, a majority-Sikh state, has largely been spared the violence.
Some media reports suggested the attackers may have crossed into Punjab from Kashmir before launching the assault.
Meanwhile, Somali militant Islamist group al-Shabaab attacked a Mogadishu hotel on Sunday, driving a car packed with explosives through the hotel gate and killing at least 13 people, a first responder and the rebel group said.
China’s Foreign Ministry said that a Chinese national who worked doing security at its embassy in the country, which is located in the hotel, was among the dead, and that three others received minor injuries, SBS reported.
– with AAP
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