Mortar shell explosion at school kills 7 students in Afghanistan

A mortar shell has exploded at a religious school in northern Afghanistan, killing seven students, police say.

The deadly blast occurred in a religious school in the Ishkamish district of Takhar Province on Thursday, when a live mortar shell was mishandled at the site.

“As per initial investigation, the explosion was caused by a mortar that had somehow been carried inside the madrassa,” police spokesman Khalil Asir said, referring to the school.

Provincial governor spokesman Jawad Hejri also confirmed the incident.

No further details were immediately available.

Also, on Wednesday night, a suspected Taliban attack killed at least seven police officers in the east-central province of Baghlan, Afghanistan’s Tolo News television channel quoted an unnamed security source as saying on Thursday.

“The Taliban has also suffered casualties but there is no exact information,” the source added.

The latest attacks come as the government and the Taliban militant group agreed to hold their first high-level meeting in a peace process in Qatar.

SS