Isis claims responsibility for deadly gun and suicide bomb attack on state TV station in Jalalabad, Afghanistan

'Isis fighters are currently carrying out an attack inside the state broadcasting building'

Smoke billows from the scene where suspected militants attacked the state-run RTA TV station in Jalalabad, Afghanistan (EPA)

Isis has claimed responsibility for a suicide attack on an Afghan state TV station that killed at least six people as well as the attackers and wounded 17.

The attack, in the eastern province of Nangarhar, was the latest in a series on Afghan journalists and media in recent years. It came just over a week after it was confirmed that the leader of Isis in Afghanistan had been killed in a US drone strike.

Isis, or Daesh as it is generally known in Afghanistan, has established a stronghold in Nangarhar province bordering Pakistan, where it fights both the Taliban and Afghan government forces.

The raid on the RTA state broadcaster in the provincial capital of Jalalabad was carried out by four attackers, one of whom had detonated a suicide bomb at the entrance to the compound, said provincial governor Gulab Mangal.

As the attack unfolded, heavy gunfire could be heard from around the RTA building, which is close to the governor's compound

"Isis fighters are currently carrying out an attack inside the state broadcasting building in the city of Jalalabad," the movement's AMAQ news agency said in a statement on instant messaging service Telegram.

The three others were killed by security forces in the gun battle.

The Taliban, who also have a strong presence in the region, denied responsibility.

Isis has recently been hit hard by US air strikes and special forces operations.

The head of Isis in Afghanistan, Abdul Hassib, was reported this month to have been killed in a joint Afghan-US operation in Nangarhar at the end of April.

Isis has also claimed responsibility for a series of high-profile attacks in the capital, Kabul, including one in March on Afghanistan's largest military hospital.

Reuters