9 killed, including 8 children in blast at religious school in Afghanistan

Kabul: An Afghan official says a bombing at a religious school in northern Parwan province has killed the chief cleric and 8 students.

Deputy governor Shah Wali Shahid says the head of the Parwan clerical council, Mawlavi Abdul Rahim Hanafi, was assassinated in the explosion.

Shahid says Hanafi was the main target of the bombing, which took place on Tuesday morning at the madrassa in Charakar, the provincial capital.

It wasn't immediately clear why the cleric was targeted and no group immediately claimed responsibility for the attack.

Shahid denounced the attack as a "terrorist act." He says an investigation is underway to determine how the bomb was brought into the classroom.

The Taliban announced the start of their spring offensive last month, threatening to step up attacks across the country.