Karachi: Three children, aged between 8 and 12, were killed when a rocket propellant they were playing with exploded in Kashmore district in Pakistan's Sindh province, police said on Monday.
The incident took place near Kandhkot town in the district. The children were playing with the propellant they apparently found in the fields near their village.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Syed Asghar Ali Shah said that the propellant was coloured and exploded when the boys started playing with it.
"The villagers told us the boys belonged to the same tribe and were out playing in the fields,” he added.
"Initial impressions are that it was a solid propellant which can store fuel or other explosive material for long periods," he said.
The fragments of the propellant were being examined by the bomb disposal squad, he added.
The rocket propellant might have been left behind by dacoits who are active on the riverbeds in the Kashmore district, he concluded.