Ashley May

USA TODAY

Three students at a pair of U.S. universities — Emory and the University of California-Berkeley — were killed in the horrific attack on a popular Bangladeshi restaurant that left six gunmen and 20 hostages dead before commandos ended the 10-hour standoff.

Abinta Kabir, a U.S. citizen from Miami, Florida, and Faraaz Hossain, both students at Emory's Oxford College campus, were among the dead at the Holey Artisan Bakery siege in the capital of Dhaka.

India's minister of external affairs said 19-year-old Tarushi Jain, an Indian citizen studying at the University of California-Berkeley, was also killed.

The Islamic State claimed responsibility for the siege, which ended early Saturday at the eatery popular with foreigners when authorities moved in to halt the standoff. Two police officers were killed in the early stages of the takeover.

20 hostages dead after 10-hour standoff with ISIL in Bangladesh

Kabir, from Miami, was in the area visiting family and friends when she was taken hostage and killed, the university said in a statement. Hossain, who completed his second year at Oxford College and was planning to attend Emory's Goizueta Business School in the fall, was also taken hostage and killed, the school said.

Emory University is offering support to members of its Oxford, Ga., community, through counseling services. Oxford College is located about 35 miles east of the school's main campus near downtown Atlanta.

University President James Wagner said Abinta's mother, whom he had reached, was in "unspeakable pain" upon receiving news of the death of her daughter.

Denika Harlalka was studying abroad in London when she found out about Abinta's death through a group chat, 11Alive reports. The students were both part of the student activities committee on campus. Harlalka, who is a year older than Abinta, called her the "sweetest and most helpful person ever."

"In such a short span of time, we had become so close and had so many inside jokes," Harlalka told 11Alive. "This is just so so terrible. I still can't digest that this has happened. I've been crying since the second I found out."