A 12-year old boy in Egypt has passed away after getting severely beaten by his teacher for not doing his homework, BBC reports.
Egypt's ministry of education said an "urgent inquiry" has been launched into the circumstances of the boy's death.
The teacher, who said he had "no intention to kill him but the beating was part of discipline" has since been suspended by the school.
Forensics department chief, Hisham Abdel Hamidhe told reporters that the deceased, Islam Sharif, had head injuries and suffered a brain haemorrhage.
Last December, Egypt's National Council for Childhood and Motherhood said attacks on children had increased by 55% between January and October compared with the average over the previous three years, with 50% of these cases being registered in schools.