20 killed in Afghanistan avalanche

"More than 20 people, including women and children, died and dozens of others went missing as the result of heavy avalanche at midnight late Tuesday in several villages in Panjshir province," a provincial government official told Xinhua.

"The number of casualties in the disaster may rise further," he said. Local disaster officials failed to launch a rescue operation as roads in the province have been blocked by heavy snowfall.

The mountainous province with Bazarak as its capital is located 200 km north of Kabul.