Afghan girls injured in acid attack

KABUL, Afghanistan, Dec. 1 (UPI) -- A 17-year-old girl and her two sisters were injured in an acid-throwing attack after she declined a marriage proposal from a younger man, Afghan officials said.

Police in Kunduz province, north of Kabul, said the assailant was believed to be the spurned suitor, the Los Angeles Times reported Wednesday.

The girl and her younger sisters were hospitalized following Tuesday's attack. Hamdullah Danishi, the acting governor of Kunduz, said an investigation is underway.

While acid attacks against women are not uncommon in Afghanistan, most incidents are kept quiet, the newspaper said. Officials said the young woman had the support of her family in rejecting the marriage proposal.