Authorities have said that gunmen rushed into a hospital in Lahore, Pakistan, on Tuesday and killed four people before fleeing.

The New York Times has reported that police said the motive was to free a militant who had taken part in Friday's attack on two Lahore mosques of the persecuted Ahmadi sect.

Local commentators speculated the intention of the attackers was not to free the militant but rather kill him to prevent him from revealing information about the attack to the police.

It has been reported that more than 80 Ahmadis were killed in the mosque attacks, and 35 wounded Ahmadis are being treated in the hospital the gunmen attacked.

The Times further reported that a witness said the intruders, dressed in police uniforms, were unsuccessful in an effort to enter the intensive care unit housing the militant and were driven off by police gunfire.

Police also said that the intruders killed three police officers and a woman before they escaped.

Suhail Sukhera, a senior police officer, said, "We are searching for them. We will trace them by any costs. We are in a state of war." (With Inputs from Agencies)