At least 126 persons, 84 of them children, have been killed by Taliban gunmen who attacked a school run by the military in the Pakistani city of Peshawar, according to local officials.

About10 gunmen dressed in Pakistani military uniforms are believed to have scaled the walls of the school and launched an attack on people there. About 500 students, teachers and others were in the Army Public School at the time of the attack.

While an unspecified number of them have escaped, many people, including students, are still being held hostage by the gunmen who are now battling Pakistani army commandoes who have surrounded the area and launched a rescue mission.

More than 100 people have also been injured in the attack and officials fear that the death toll will rise.

At least two of the Taliban attackers were killed by the military, with one, apparently rigged with explosives, blowing himself up. Some reports say that the army has issued a statement saying that it had killed five of the attackers.

The Taliban was quick to claim responsibility for the attack, saying that it was carried out in retaliation for military operations in Waziristan, along the Pakistan/Afghanistan border, in which hundreds of tribesmen were killed.

The provincial government has declared a three day national mourning period and the Pakistani Prime Minister, NNawaz Sharif, has described the incident as a national tragedy, saying he would personally supervise army operations in the attacked school.