Kabul, Sep 15 (IANS) Afghan security forces have confiscated a cache of firearms and ammunition in southern Kandahar province, the Ministry of National Defence announced in a statement on Monday.
Acting on intelligence reports and a tip-off, the security personnel conducted a search operation along the Spin Boldak-Kandahar route, uncovering an M4 machine gun, AK-47 rifles, pistols, hand grenades and a large quantity of ammunition, along with assorted military equipment, the statement detailed, Xinhua News Agency reported.
Two suspects were detained in connection with the seizure, which authorities described as a key step in disrupting potential threats to public safety.
Over the past four years, the Afghan government has collected thousands of weapons and vast stockpiles of ammunition nationwide, efforts aimed at stabilizing security in the conflict-scarred country and fostering a safer environment for reconstruction and development.
On September 7, the provincial police said that a number of explosive devices, including an anti-tank mine, were discovered in Afghanistan’s eastern Kapisa province.
The munitions, which included an anti-tank mine and six hand grenades, were discovered in an abandoned house in a village outside the provincial capital Mahmud-e-Raqi, provincial police spokesman Abdul Fatah Faez said.
Efforts were being made to identify and arrest those responsible for keeping the weaponry illegally, the official further said.
On August 26, a provincial police office in a news release said that the counter-terrorism police had discovered arms and ammunition during a series of operations in the Kapisa province.
The weaponry, according to the news release, includes seven AK-47 assault rifles, pistols, projectiles and hundreds of bullets, which have been discovered from individuals who kept them illegally.
Without providing further details, the news release warned that no one has the right to possess or carry arms unlawfully.
On August 22, provincial police spokesman Mullah Ezatullah Haqqani said police in Afghanistan’s southern Helmand province had seized a cache of arms and ammunition during a recent operation.
The discovery, which included 14 pistols and a dozen gun magazines, was made in Musa Qala district, where security forces also arrested two individuals suspected of involvement in the case, according to the official.
–IANS
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