Weapons supplied to restive district

 JALALABAD (PAN): Light and heavy weapons have been rushed to the restive Hesarak district of eastern Nangarhar province, authorities said on Friday.

The arms supplies came a day after the Hesarak district chief, Abdul Khaliq Maroof, told Pajhwok Afghan News the town could fall to the Taliban anytime.

He said the problem had been taken up many times with the provincial administration, but no remedial steps had been taken so far.

Maroof alleged the insurgents were killing and harassing people, but he lacked resources and personnel to take on them.

“I have protected the district for the past seven months on my own. But now, I am running out of even my personal resources,” the district chief complained.

He estimated over 1,000 local and foreign militants were active in the district, which had only 48 policemen — most of them his relatives. Even weapons were supplied by his relatives and locals, he claimed.

But Ahmad Zia Abdulzai, the governor’s spokesman, said weapons and ammunition were sent to the district late on Thursday. 

The spokesman believed there was no immediate threat to Hesarak from the Taliban, and the district chief’s remarks looked to be sentimental.

Maroof also acknowledged the receipt of arms and ammunitions from Jalalabad, the provincial capital. However, he said the supplies were inadequate and other resources were also needed.

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