At least 20 people killed as landslide hits northern Afghanistan

"The tragic incident happened at around 10:30 a.m. local time in Shipo area of Kohistan district when more than 50 people were busy in illegal digging of a gold mine there and almost all of them were buried alive and so far 20 dead bodies and seven injured persons have been discovered," Dehqan told Xinhua.

Rescue operation for discovering the remaining people was going on, the official said, adding the number of casualties might go up. ■