Four children killed by mortar in Khyber Agency

PESHAWAR: Four young children were killed on Friday when a mortar slammed into their family's vehicle as they attempted to escape Shalobar area of Khyber Agency, officials said.

Two close female relatives were wounded in the incident in Khyber, where the military is fighting against local warlord Mangal Bagh and his Lashkar-e-Islam faction.

The child victims were one girl and three boys, aged between three and nine years, officials said.

"Four children were killed and two women were critically wounded. They were from one family," said Bakhtiar Khan, an administrative official in Bara town where the incident took place.

Syed Ahmad Jan, another government official, said the family was leaving the Shalobar area of Khyber after authorities issued evacuation orders warning that the military was planning to expand its offensive on May 10.

"There was an exchange of fire between militants and troops," Khan told, saying that a "stray mortar" had hit the family's vehicle.

More than 250,000 people have fled the fighting in Khyber since January, according to officials.