Afghanistan: Taliban issuing gun licences to traders, businessmen as abductions soar

Kabul: In a somewhat hilarious decision, the Taliban rulers of Afghanistan have decided to provide gun licenses to traders in the capital Kabul. The Taliban’s security department in Kabul has announced that businessmen in Afghanistan’s capital will be provided with security and gun licences. According to a report by Tolo News, the Taliban arrived at the decision after a series of meetings with traders in Kabul. Khalid Zadran, a spokesman for the security department in Kabul, informed the local media the Taliban will provide security for traders as well as common citizens in Afghanistan. “We not only pay attention to the security situation of the citizens but also the traders. We have meetings with them (traders) at the end of every month ad every week and discuss their security issues in coordination with them,” Zadran was quoted as saying by Tolo News. According to the Afghanistan Chamber of Commerce and Investment (ACCI), around 350 gun licenses have been issued to Afghan businessmen. “The Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan has helped the private sector in security issues. In only one day, it issued 350 licenses for weapons and also provided any kind of help we asked them for,” acting head of the ACCI, Mohammad Younus Momand said. This move by the Taliban comes after the media reported the abduction of 13 traders in Afghanistan. However, the security department in Kabul had denied those reports. This decision by the Taliban is somewhat ironic as lethal weapons, including Kalashikov rifles and rocket launchers are freely available all over Afghanistan. The militaristic Afghan culture, which promotes the possession of weapons by men, coupled with the unstable security situation of Afghanistan has resulted in a large section of the population owning guns. This situation and the almost uninterrupted trade in illegal weapons means that the Taliban will probably find it very difficult to control gun ownership. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.