LASHKAR GAH, Afghanistan -- Up to 17 students of an Afghan girl school were mysteriously poisoned in southern Helmand province on Monday, Daud Shah Safari, head of the provincial education department said.

"Up to 17 students of a girl school were mysteriously poisoned in their classroom in provincial capital Lashkar Gah today morning and have been taken to hospital," Safari told Xinhua.

This is the first time that such incident happened in the restive province, the official added.

The affected students said they have smelled a strange gas when entering classroom.

Deputy to the provincial police chief, Guli Khan, confirmed the incident and said an expert team had been sent to the girl school in Lashkar Gah to examine the situation.

However, the official didn't rule out the involvement of anti-government militants in the incident.

The militancy-plagued and poppy-growing Helmand province has been the scene of Taliban-led insurgency and violent incidents over the past one decade.