The Afghan special forces killed two of the four militants who attacked the Indian consulate in Afghanistan's Mazar-i-Sharif, the capital city of northern Balkh province, on Sunday night. 

"The number of attackers were 4, two of them killed but not confirmed by police yet," Afghan news agency Pajhwok Afghan News said in a tweet, according to IANS.

Xinhua news agency also cited its sources saying: "Two of the four militants, who targeted the three-member consulate, have been gunned down by Afghan special forces".

Reports suggested that everyone at the consulate was safe.

The attack

A group of four armed militants opened fire at the consulate in an attempt to enter the complex. However, the security forces deterred them after which they hid in a nearby building.

"They faced resistance from the guards and, instead, entered a house about 100 metres from the consulate and opened fire from there," Al Jazeera quoted its reporter as saying.

Two explosions and several gunshots were heard as the militants attacked the consulate complex from a nearby building.

The Afghan forces cordoned off the area and engaged the militants in gunfire, reportedly killing two of them.

No group has claimed the responsibility for the attack as yet.

The attack on the Indian diplomatic mission came amid confrontation between Indian security forces and militants hiding at Indian Air Force base in Pathankot, Punjab.

On Saturday, the Indian security forces gunned down four militants in a nearly 15-hour long gunbattle. Six soldiers were also killed on Saturday's attack, while another was killed on Sunday during search and combing operation at the base.

The security forces engaged in another round of firing on Sunday as two militants were hiding inside the base. The counter-attack has resumed for the third day on Monday. The militants are suspected to be members of Jaish-e-Muhammed.