Official figures showed Thursday that at least 40 people were killed in the attack on Kabul’s luxury hotel earlier at the weekend.

"The final death toll (among Afghans) from Intercontinental Hotel attack stands at 25," health ministry spokesman Wahid Majrooh told AFP.

"We don't know about the foreign fatalities," he said, adding that 12 Afghans had been wounded.

Investigators are still working in finding how the militants were able to get past privately-owned balkh Kabul Safety & Security guards and conduct the attack with guns.