A rocket exploded in a school yard in the eastern Afghan mountains yesterday, killing seven students and wounding 34 other people in an attack possibly aimed at a nearby US military base, officials said.
The tragedy was the deadliest in a string of assaults to strike Afghanistan's education system since the hard-line Islamic Taliban regime was ousted after the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks.
Salabagh School is located in a steep river valley about 1km from the US base, which frequently draws militant fire. A second rocket yesterday exploded in a nearby field and hurt no one. Coalition helicopters patroled the area after the attack.
After the blast, distraught parents rushed to the school. Hundreds of boys aged from six to 16 were in its courtyard at the time of the missile strike, witnesses said. Pools of blood soaked into the ground and shoes and pieces of blood-covered clothing were scattered about.
"I saw so many children on the ground. Many were not moving. Screams were coming from everywhere. I was crying," 12-year-old student Omar Sahib said. "One teacher was lying there without a leg."
Local police commander Mohammed Hasan said many of the students were studying outside because the school doesn't have enough classrooms.
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