At least four teenage boys have died from carbon monoxide poisoning caused by coal fumes in Afghanistan’s central Daikundi province, local Taliban authorities said on Saturday (January 24).
According to a statement issued by the Taliban’s provincial police command, the incident occurred late on Saturday night (January 24) inside a residential room in the second district of Nili, the provincial capital.
The victims were students who had been preparing for Afghanistan’s national university entrance exam, known as the Kankor, the statement said. They were aged 16, 17, 18 and 19, and were originally from Nojog village in the Ashterlai district of Daikundi.
Local authorities said the deaths were caused by excessive coal smoke inside the room, combined with a blocked stove pipe, which led to a dangerous build-up of toxic gases while the boys were asleep.
Carbon monoxide poisoning is a recurring cause of death in Afghanistan during the winter months, particularly in remote and impoverished areas where families rely on coal or wood-burning stoves to heat poorly ventilated homes.
Earlier this winter, two young women also died from similar causes in Miramor district of Daikundi, highlighting the ongoing risks associated with unsafe heating methods.
Such incidents underscore Afghanistan’s deepening humanitarian crisis, where poverty, lack of safe infrastructure, and limited access to modern heating and electricity continue to put lives at risk. Students preparing for the Kankor exam often live in cramped rented rooms away from their families, increasing their vulnerability during harsh winter conditions.
