At least one civilian was killed and one police officer from PD11 wounded during a clash between police and unknown armed men in Kabul on Friday.

The incident happened on Friday at about 12 noon local time after gunmen, fleeing from police, opened fire on a police ranger.

The police had been chasing the suspected criminals through Khairkhana at the time.

Kabul police said there had been three suspects involved, all with criminal backgrounds.

A gunfight between police and the suspects broke out – resulting in damage to civilian cars in the area.

One eye witness, Ghulam Safdar, said he had been driving in his car with his children when the gunmen’s vehicle collided with his car.

“I heard gun fire and then stopped my car at the side of the road. When the car (driven by the armed men) got to me they could not go anywhere and crashed their vehicle into my vehicle to try to get past,” Safdar said.

He said the gunmen then started shooting at civilians.

One person was killed.

“When the vehicle arrived here (armed men vehicle), they opened fire on people,” said Aidi Mohammad, a shopkeeper in the area.

“We hid in the shops until the firing stopped. When we came out of the shop, we saw that a man was lying on the ground,” said Mohammad Zia, another shopkeeper.

The three suspects fled the scene.

Kabul residents have meanwhile called on the new Kabul police chief to put an end to such incidents.