Child dies in mortar attack on Afghan school
A mortar shell slammed into a school near Kabul today, killing a child and injuring about 30 others, a government spokesman said.
Officials blamed the incident on Taliban and al-Qaida renegades, although the area is controlled by a warlord who has often changed sides.
The explosion occurred at a school in Sarobi, about 40 miles east of Kabul, according to interior ministry official Mohammed Azimi.
The victims were aged between 11 and 13.
‘‘No one knows who fired the mortar,’’ said Azimi. ‘‘They fired the mortar intentionally. We think it was Taliban and al-Qaida.’’
He said Taliban and al-Qaida renegades ‘‘want to sabotage the security and stability of this government of Hamid Karzai.’’
However, Azimi said he had no direct evidence linking Taliban and al-Qaida to the attack. The area is controlled by a warlord Isatullah, who once fought with the US backed guerrilla group, Hezb-e-Islami, in the war against Soviet occupiers.
Later, he fought with the Taliban but joined the Northern Alliance when they took control of Kabul in November.
The Sarobi area was site of the November murder of four international journalists who were stopped by armed men along the road, robbed and shot.
