At least 18 people were killed and 35 others injured, mostly women and children, when a truck carrying Afghan refugees from neighbouring Pakistan overturned today on a road in the eastern part of Afghanistan, officials report.

Abdul Malik Niazai, spokesman for the provincial governor, says that the crash took place on the main road between Kabul, the Afghan capital and Nangarhar province.

He says among the dead were 10 children and five women, and the injured were taken to hospitals in Nangarhar for medical treatment.

Zabihullah Mujahid, the Taliban government’s spokesman, expresses sorrow with regard to the incident and offers condolences to the families of the victims.

Roads are in bad condition, and drivers often ignore traffic rules, which is why traffic accidents are common throughout Afghanistan.

The passengers were part of thousands of Afghans who have recently been returned from Pakistan, which has recently stepped up its action against migrants from Afghanistan, deporting and forcing some to leave the country in 2023. At the same time, Iran stepped up its deportation of Afghan migrants.

Since then, millions of Afghans have come back to Afghanistan from both countries, including some who had been born in Pakistan and spent many years living and working there.