CHAGCHARAN (SW): The Taliban militants and other warlords continue to obtain handsome income from the local mining industry in Ghor province, local officials have claimed.
Abdul Basir Qadri, deputy chairman of the provincial council, told Salam Watandar the Taliban have made deals with a number of mining firms and smugglers for their shares in this sector. He added the militants continue to accumulate huge sums of cash from here.
Local authorities do not deny this. Qais Ranjbir, director for mines and petroleum in the province, acknowledged that a number of mines remain under the control of the Taliban. He recalled a mining firm refrained from investing here as their demand to deploy some 150 security personnel could not be met.
Other warlords and armed groups have also been blamed for illegal mining in the province. Abdul Hai Khatibi, spokesman for the provincial governor, noted that mines in Feroz Koh and Tolak Dawlatyar areas continue to be exploited by the armed groups.
Ghor is a mountainous province, and has a number of minerals including gold, silver, lapis lazuli and limestone.
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