Five Afghan schoolgirls have been attacked with battery acid by suspected Taliban fighters in the southern city of Kandahar.

The attack on Wednesday occurred when two men on motorbikes confronted the students outside the Mirwais Nika Girls High School.

Two girls were seriously injured by what was discovered to be battery acid.  

School girls in Kandahar are easily identifiable by their uniform - black trousers, a white shirt, black coat and a headscarf.

"We were on the way to school when two men on motorbikes stopped next to us. One of them threw acid on my sister's face. I tried to help her and then they threw acid on me too," said Latefa, a 16-year-old student.

"We were shouting and people came to see what was going on, then the two men escaped," she said.

Latefa, who did not give her family name, was hurt and Shamsia, her 18-year-old sister, remains in a serious condition with acid burns across her face.

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