KABUL, AFGHANISTAN – Three people, including two brothers, were killed when unexploded ordnance detonated in Afghanistan’s eastern Nangarhar province on Saturday, Taliban authorities said.
Sayed Tayyeb Hamad, spokesperson for the Taliban police command in Nangarhar, said the blast occurred in a scrap metal warehouse in Kama district. He said the workers had been handling metal waste when the device exploded, killing all three at the scene.
Unexploded devices left from decades of conflict continue to harm civilians across Afghanistan, one of the world’s most mine-contaminated countries.
Hundreds of Afghans, many of them children, are killed or suffer life-changing injuries each year after encountering landmines or unexploded ordnance.
In November, at least eight children were reported killed and two others injured in separate incidents involving unexploded mortar shells and landmines in Badghis and Balkh provinces.
The United Nations says an estimated 1.5 million people in Afghanistan are living with serious disabilities, many caused by past conflict. Children bear a disproportionately heavy share of these injuries.
UN agencies and demining organizations continue to call for sustained and increased international funding to keep clearance operations running and raise community awareness about explosive hazards.
