Gunmen armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades attacked an Indian Consulate in western Afghanistan on Friday, though its diplomatic staff escaped unharmed, police said. At least three gunmen opened fire on the consulate from a nearby building in Herat, provincial police chief Abdul Sami Qatra said. Qatra said police and soldiers killed three assailants in a gunbattle that saw the building catch fire as authorities evacuated neighbours. Security forces continued to search the area in case there were other gunmen, Qatra said. Syed Akbaruddin, a spokesman for India’s Ministry of External Affairs, said a deployment of the paramilitary Indo-Tibetan Border Police at the consulate held off the assault until Afghan forces arrived. He said all the Indians at the consulate were safe.