At least 8 dead, including 5 children, after old projectile explodes in Afghanistan

An explosion caused by an unexploded artillery shell killed at least three adults and five children in Afghanistan's southeastern Paktika province, local authorities reported Tuesday. The incident occurred in the Dengar Legad area of Barmal district when a scrap metal collector was attempting to cut apart the old projectile.

Mawlawi Muawiya, the Paktika police spokesperson, confirmed the details of the blast. He stated that the scrap collector, along with two other adults and five children, died as a result of the explosion. Four other children sustained injuries and were transported to nearby medical centers for treatment.

Authorities in Paktika have appealed to the public to exercise extreme caution. They urged citizens to refrain from touching or moving any unexploded ordnance or suspicious ammunition. Instead, they should immediately report such findings to the security authorities. This incident highlights the persistent danger posed by explosive remnants of past conflicts in Afghanistan.

Unexploded ordnance continues to pose a lethal risk to civilians, particularly children and those involved in scrap collection. In January, two boys aged 12 and 13 died, and a woman and another child were injured, after a rocket projectile they were handling exploded in Faryab province. According to the de facto Taliban government, at least 96 people were killed and 378 injured in Afghanistan over the past year due to explosions from mines and war remnants.