ANA officers accused of beating Bamyan directors

BAMYAN CITY (PAN): Two senior officials on Thursday accused some Afghan National Army (ANA) officers of beating them in central Bamyan province, but the defence ministry said it was not aware of the incident.

Bamyan Counternarcotics Director Hamidullah Hamid and Telecommunications Director Azizullah Hamidi told a press conference in the provincial capital they were thrashed when they wanted to embark a Kabul-bound ANA helicopter on Wednesday.

The counternarcotics director said he had not been able to visit his home over the past six months due to insecurity on highways. “When we were getting into the helicopter, one ANA officer said there was no space for us.

“We told them that we have our names on the list issued by the Bamyan coordination command. We said if the load is heavy, useless tools be removed, but they attacked us,” the director alleged.

The telecom director said: “Despite enough space in the helicopter, we were insulted and not allowed to avail the flight.”

When contacted, Defence Ministry spokesman Gen. Zahir Azimi said they had no information about the incident and promised to investigate it.

mm/ma/mud