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HERAT CITY (SW): Security officials have managed to liberate the 15 abducted de-miners who were taken away by unknown armed men in western Herat province on Friday.
Abdul Rauf Ahmadi, spokesman for the provincial police department, said on Sunday that the men have been liberated without any ‘deal’ with the abductors. The mine-clearers were abducted from the Kehsan district. It is said that the abducted men belonged to the “HALO Trust”, a non-political and non-religious registered British charity and American non-profit organization, which removes debris left behind by war, in particular land mines, with nearly 8,000 mine-clearers.
HALO's largest operation is in Afghanistan, where the organization operates as an implementing partner of the Mine Action Program for Afghanistan (MAPA).
Ahmadi noted that the militants loyal to Taliban commanders Mullah Hayder and Mulla Tofan were behind the abduction. He informed that the arrest of seven militants eventually led to the spot where the abducted men were held.
Meanwhile, Jelani Farhad, spokesman for the provincial government, has claimed that negotiations facilitated by the local elders led to the liberation of the abducted mine-clearers.
ENDS
