Afghan whooping cough kills 100

Reports from Afghanistan say 100 people have died in an outbreak of whooping cough in the north-eastern city of Badakhshan.

Correspondents in the area say the death toll is likely to increase - the region is one of the poorest in the country, and no foreign aid workers are there.

The victims are mainly children and elderly people.

Whooping cough is an infectious illness which is characterised by coughing spasms followed by harsh gasps for breath.

Afghanistan is still recovering from more than two decades of war - it has one of the highest disease-related mortality rates in the world.

From the newsroom of the BBC World Service