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http://www.pajhwok.com/en/2015/05/19/tens-female-students-poisoned-samangan

Afghanistan - Female Students Poisoned at Girls’ School in Samangan

By Mohammad Barat – May 19, 2015

AIBAK (Pajhwok): Dozens of female students were poisoned in Khuram Sarbagh district of northern Samangan province, with few of them were stated to be in critical condition, officials said on Tuesday.

The school is located in Abdul Malik locality of the district.

Qari Tajuddin, development council head of the locality, told Pajhwok Afghan News when students entered the school sharp at 9:30am they found white-type powder sprayed on the schools yard.

He added the students first felt itching in their bodies and later fell unconscious.

Abdul Latif, a resident whose two daughters had been shifted to hospital, said: When I came to know about the incident I rushed to school. I saw white powder with bad scent. Itching first and when I came out I nauseated twice.

Mohammad Nawab, Khuram Sarbagh acting district chief, said more than 50 students had been poisoned at the school.

He added eight of the students were in critical condition and were being shifted to the provincial hospital. The rest, he said, were admitted in the local hospital.

Nawab said nobody had been detained in connection with the incident yet and they have started investigations to divulge facts.

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http://www.thestatesman.com/news/world/60-girls-poisoned-at-afghanistan-school/64423.html

Afghanistan – 60 Students Poisoned at Girls’ School

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IANS – Afghanistan, Kabul – 20 May 2015 - At least 60 girls fell unconscious at a school in northern Afghanistan after they inhaled a chemical allegedly released by the Taliban, official sources told Efe news agency on Wednesday.

The incident occurred on Tuesday in the Khurram Sarbagh district in Samangan province shortly after students at the girls' school entered their classrooms, said Khairullah Anosh, governor of the province.

"Dozens of them first felt itching on their bodies and later became unconscious and fell to the ground," explained Anosh.

The poisoning was caused by a strong-smelling white powder, sprinkled throughout the school's premises.

Samangan Police Chief Akram Begzad said 30 students were taken to hospitals, while those in more serious condition were transferred to a hospital in Aibak, the province's capital.

"Initial investigation shows that Taliban fighters, who don't want girls to attend schools, were behind the incident," said Begzad, adding that the insurgents often carried out campaigns against girls' education in the region.

Cases of poisoning are common in girls' schools in Afghanistan, though their causes often remain a mystery.

In 2013, 230 students were poisoned in four separate incidents.

While analysts blamed the Taliban, spokespersons for the militants denied any involvement.