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AT Monitoring Desk-KABUL: Local official blamed Pakistan-based Lashkar-e-Jhangvi (LeJ) and Chechen militants for abduction of 30 passengers on Kabul-Kandahar Highway.
The acting governor of Zabul province, Muhammad Ashraf Nasiri, said that the LeJ and Chechen militants in cooperation with local insurgents have kidnapped 30 passengers of the Hazara ethnic minority.
Around three days ago, a number of unidentified gunmen stopped buses in Shahjoi district of Zabul province, forcing 30 passengers to leave the busses after checking their identity cards. According to reports the militants took away the passengers to Khak Afghan district of the province.
Nasiri said that efforts were on to secure safe release of the abducted passengers through mediation of 20 tribal chieftains.
“We are trying our best to secure the release of the passengers through mediation of the tribal elders. If the negotiations failed, then we will be compelled to conduct a military operation to rescue to them,” he added.
Siddiq Siddiqi, spokesman for the Ministry of Interior (MoI) told TOLOnews that they will spare no efforts to secure safe release of the abducted persons through negotiations.
Civil society activists the other day staged protests in capital Kabul demanding immediate release of the passengers. Some of the activists blamed the government for turning blind eye to the issue.
