Nearly 80 girls were poisoned and hospitalised in two separate attacks at their primary schools on Saturday and Sunday.
The person who orchestrated the poisoning had a personal grudge, according to the authorities.
The attacks took place in Sar-e-Pul province, northern Afghanistan, a local education official said on Monday June 5.
It is thought to be the first time this kind of assault has happened since the Taliban swept to power in August 2021 and began their crackdown on the rights and freedoms of Afghan women and girls.
Girls are banned from education beyond P.6 and women are barred from most jobs and public spaces.
The poisonings happened in Sangcharak district, said Mohammad Rahmani, who heads the provincial education department.
He said 60 students were poisoned in Naswan-e-Kabod Aab school and 17 others poisoned in Naswan-e-Faizabad school.
“Both primary schools are near to each other and were targeted one after the other,” he told the press.
He says the learners are hospitalised and Investigations have been launched.
