Avalanche leaves 100 dead

About 100 people have died of cold and thousands are trapped after an avalanche of snow and ice blocked Afghanistan's main northern highway in the Hindu Kush mountains, according to a British charity official, Reuter reports from Kabul.

'A disaster situation is being created, with hundreds of vehicles and thousands of travellers trapped in extremely savage conditions without food or proper clothing,' said John Lane, head of the Halo Trust charity, which carries out mine-clearing operations in Afghanistan.