More than 120 girls and three teachers were admitted to an Afghanistan hospital after being poisoned in their classes with a type of spray, a Takhar provincial official has said

The incident occurred in the provincial capital of Talokhan, in the Bibi Hajera girls school, said Dr. Hafizullah Safi, director of public health for the northern Afghanistan province. Forty of the 122 girls were still hospitalized, he said, with symptoms including dizziness, vomiting, headaches and loss of consciousness. Blood samples have been sent to Kabul in an effort to determine the substance used, he said. "The Afghan people know that the terrorists and the Taliban are doing these things to threaten girls and stop them going to school," said Khalilullah Aseer, spokesman for Takhar police. "That's something we and the people believe. Now we are implementing democracy in Afghanistan and we want girls to be educated, but the government's enemies don't want this." There have been several instances of girls being poisoned in schools in recent years. In April 2012, also in Takhar province, more than 170 women and girls were hospitalized after drinking apparently poisoned well water at a school. Local health officials blamed the acts on Islamic extremists opposed to women's education.