At least four students were injured when a bomb exploded inside a private school in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa province, northwestern Pakistan, authorities said on Saturday.According to the school administration, a fourth-grade student picked up a “toy bomb” on his way to school in Jamrud tehsil, Khyber district, near the Afghan border and brought it into his classroom on Friday.Local authorities explained that “toy bombs” are actually abandoned mortar shells found in the province, especially near the Afghan border, which children often mistake for toys. The bomb exploded when the student dropped it on the classroom floor.The injured students were immediately taken to a hospital in Peshawar for treatment and were later discharged, news agency PTI reported.Security forces have blocked off the area and launched a search operation to locate and defuse any remaining unexploded shells to prevent further accidents. Police have also initiated an investigation into the incident.Incidents involving abandoned mortar shells are common in the region. Last year, on December 27, four boys were killed and two critically injured when an old mortar shell exploded in Bajaur district. Such devices continue to pose serious risks to local communities, particularly children, in heavily mined tribal areas along the Afghanistan border.
