KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Three children were killed and two others wounded when an unexploded shell detonated in Sar-e-Pol province, northern Afghanistan, according to local Taliban authorities.
The office of the Taliban governor in Sar-e-Pol said in a newsletter that the incident took place in Sayyad district on Friday, October 4.
The Taliban newsletter detailed that the incident occurred when the children found the unexploded shell and began playing with it, which detonated and led to the tragic incident.
The two injured children were transported to a local hospital, with one of them in critical condition.
This is the latest incident in Afghanistan, a country that has endured decades of conflict and violence, particularly the Taliban insurgency, making it one of the world’s most heavily contaminated areas with remnants of war, such as landmines and unexploded ordnance.
Last year, the UN reported that about two-thirds of Afghanistan’s more than 400 districts are affected by explosives. Additionally, approximately 3 million people live within a 1 km radius of mines, improvised explosive devices, and other remnants of war.
Children have been particularly vulnerable to fatal or life-changing injuries as they unintentionally step on landmines or pick up unexploded ordnance littered around the places they stay or play.
According to a UN report, between January 2022 and February 2024, at least 1,401 people, mostly teenage children, were killed or injured by explosive remnants of war in Afghanistan.
Meanwhile, UN agencies, including those engaged in mine clearance, report a significant funding shortfall in Afghanistan’s mine action sector. “Of the 4.4 million people who need mine action services in 2023, only 14 per cent received assistance.”
According to UN, the most affected initiatives include mine clearance, risk education, and assistance for survivors. Some projects have ceased entirely, while others have secured funding only until August this year.
