The girls were collecting firewood（柴火） when one of them hit the mine with an axe², a spokesman for the governor of Nangarhar province said. 

 

Most of those killed were aged³ between nine and 11, officials said.

 

Meanwhile at least one person has been killed in an explosion on the outskirts⁴（郊区） of the Afghan capital, Kabul.

 

Several more were injured in the blast, which took place on the Jalalabad road, home to many Nato bases and compounds housing international staff. 

 

Police said the explosion happened near the offices of an international construction company, but it is unclear what the target was.

 

 

There are conflicting reports as to whether the landmine in Nangarhar was planted by insurgents⁶（叛乱分子） or was a mine left over from Afghanistan's many decades of conflict. Such unexploded mines are still commonly found in rural areas.

 

One spokesman said that this was a recent landmine, but another official said it dated from the Russian era. 

 

"Most of those killed were aspiring⁷ engineers, doctors and teachers. Only four bodies can be recognised," a tribal⁸ elder told the BBC's Bilal Sarwary in Kabul.

 

"This area was both used during fighting against Russians but Taliban and Afghan government also fighting in this area," he said. 

 

This incident took place near Dawlatzai village, in Nangarhar's Chaperhar district.

 

The two injured girls were in critical condition in hospital, one official said.

点击收听单词发音