An unexploded ordnance blast killed two children and wounded five others in eastern Afghanistan on Thursday, the Taliban governor’s office in Nangarhar said.
The explosion occurred around 12:30 p.m. in the Spin Khur area of Batikot district in Nangarhar province, the statement said.
The incident happened when children threw an unexploded shell they had found into a fire, the statement said.
The wounded were taken to a regional hospital, where two of the injured children were reported to be in critical condition.
Afghanistan remains heavily contaminated with landmines and unexploded ordnance left over from decades of conflict.
The UN Assistance Mission in Afghanistan (UNAMA) has said Afghanistan ranks as the world’s third most affected country in terms of casualties from explosive remnants of war.
UNAMA says mines and other explosive remnants remain widespread across the country and that children account for about 80% of casualties, often after coming into contact with unexploded munitions while playing.
The International Committee of the Red Cross has previously described Afghanistan as one of the countries most contaminated by landmines and unexploded ordnance.
The HALO Trust, a mine-clearance organisation, said last year that contamination from improvised explosive devices in Afghanistan had expanded to more than 65 square kilometres, up from about 53 square kilometres at the end of 2022, with contamination identified in 26 provinces.
