A Girl, No Older Than 10, Caught Wearing A Suicide Vest In Afghanistan

The young girl was reportedly encouraged to carry out an attack by her brother — a Taliban commander.

Photo of the girl that the Taliban recruited as a suicide bomber, via @Reuters. More @TIME http://t.co/EPzFd32sJe

Patrick Witty

@patrickwitty

Photo of the girl that the Taliban recruited as a suicide bomber, via @Reuters. More @TIME http://t.co/EPzFd32sJe

/ Via

An Afghan girl, no older than 10, was caught wearing a suicide vest in southern Afghanistan on Sunday, according to reports. The young girl was spotted in the vest by Afghan soldiers who were the intended targets of the attack.

The girl, who according to some reports is as young as 8, was made to carry out the attack by her brother — a prominent Taliban commander.

NBC News reported that the "scared and cold" child told officers that her brother Zahir had given her the suicide vest and directed her to blow it up at a police checkpoint in Helmand province.

However, she was unable to operate the detonator before being arrested. She was said to be in a state of shock and confusion.

While the Taliban's use of children and teenagers in suicide bomb attacks is well-known, this girl is one of the youngest recorded by the Afghan government and one of the few girls recruited for a suicide attack, reported NDTV India.

Skip to footer