Suspected Taliban burn Afghan school

KABUL, Afghanistan -- Suspected Taliban set fire to an elementary school south of Kabul, scattering leaflets saying girls should not be allowed in the classroom, an official said Wednesday.

The blaze late Tuesday destroyed two rooms and two tents at the coed Moghul Khil school, said Amir Jhan, military spokesman for the region.

No one was arrested but Amir blamed supporters of the hardline Islamic militia, which ruled Afghanistan until it was ousted by U.S.-led troops in 2001.

Before the attackers fled, they scattered leaflets saying girls should not go to school, and threatening a "reaction" against teachers who teach them, he said.

Despite the threat, classes resumed Wednesday in three undamaged rooms. Amir said about 200 of the school's 400 boys and girls showed up for class.

The school is in the Muhammad Agha district of Logar province, some 40 miles south of the Afghan capital. Local officials say "extremists" set fire to two other schools in the same area last month.

The Taliban regime barred girls from attending school, part of its drive to establish a "pure" Islamic state.

It was ousted by a U.S.-led coalition in late 2001 for harboring al-Qaida, Osama bin Laden's terrorist network, which is blamed for the Sept. 11, 2001 attacks.

However, many Afghans, especially in rural areas, remain opposed to education for girls.

The Taliban and their allies have recently stepped up attacks on government targets in an apparent drive to undermine President Hamid Karzai's government.

In the latest violence, unknown assailants tossed two grenades into a home where men at a segregated wedding reception were listening to music, also banned during Taliban rule. Two people were killed and 14 were wounded, said Hazrat Ali, the regional military chief.

No one claimed responsibility for the attack late Tuesday in the Chapariar district of eastern Afghanistan. Ali blamed Taliban and al-Qaida but offered no evidence.