Horrific blast sees 15 children killed and 20 others injured outside house in Afghanistan

FIFTEEN children have been killed and at least 20 other people have been injured in a horrific blast in Afghanistan. The incident occurred as people gathered for a religious event in the eastern province of Ghazni on Friday afternoon. Reports suggest the explosives had been concealed in a vehicle, either a rickshaw or the sidecar […]

FIFTEEN children have been killed and at least 20 other people have been injured in a horrific blast in Afghanistan.

The incident occurred as people gathered for a religious event in the eastern province of Ghazni on Friday afternoon.

Twitter

Fifteen children have been killed in a horrific blast in Afghanistan[/caption]

EPA

Reports suggest the target was a local security unit[/caption]

BBC

Fears remain that the death toll will rise[/caption]

Reports suggest the explosives had been concealed in a vehicle, either a rickshaw or the sidecar of a motorbike, parked outside a house.

Speaking to the BBC, the head of the provincial council said the target of the attack had been a local security unit.

He added that it had been carried out by the “enemies of Afghanistan”.

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.

Police confirmed that all those killed were children.

A local government spokesperson said the victims were mostly between the ages of eight and 18.

The children had reportedly gathered around the vehicle shortly before the explosion occurred.

The spokesperson said there were fears the death toll could continue to rise.

The attack occurred in the district of Gilan, around 70 miles south of the provincial capital, Ghazni city, which is reportedly currently under Taliban control.

A spokesperson for the Taliban claimed that the explosion occurred as the children gathered round an unexploded mortar shell they wanted to sell for scarp, AA.com reported.

It comes just weeks after 30 security personnel were killed in a suicide car bomb attack on an army base in Ghazni.

It also follows the killing of Mahboobullah Mohebi, the deputy governor of national capital Kabul, on Tuesday.

Mohebi died in an explosion as he made his way to work, and security officials later said a magnetic bomb, known as a “sticky bomb”, had been placed on his car.

Peace talks between the Taliban and the Afghan government aimed at ending the country’s 18-year war are currently on hold until January.

In February, the US signed an agreement with the Taliban that will see American troops withdrawn within 14 months if the Taliban upholds certain conditions, including severing ties with a number of other international terror groups.

BBC

No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack[/caption]