A explosion from a bomb hidden in a truck full of firewood killed at least 24 people, including 12 school children, early Thursday morning in a village less than 50 km south of the Afghan capital, local and federal officials said.

The truck had crashed Wednesday night in a stream near two schools in Logar Province, exploding when police came to investigate Thursday morning. Logar is the site of increasing activity by Taliban insurgents. There are several new US military bases there with daily operations aimed at crushing the Islamist rebels.