A number of Badakhshan provincial council members and civil society activists on Sunday raised concerns over the end of military operations in the province and said the move would give militants a chance to regroup and strengthen their positions.
They urged security forces to continue their operations against insurgents in the province.
“If we don’t make use of this short opportunity, we will face a huge problem in the coming spring,” said Jawed Mojadedi, a member of Badakhshan provincial council.
Saifuddin Sais, head of a civil society organization in the province, believes that postponing the operation will open routes for supplies to militants. “Wardooj district shares a border with Chitral area of Pakistan and it also shares a border with the volatile province of Nuristan. Once the snow has melted, the militants can receive equipment from these two areas,” he said.
Meanwhile, a number of Jihadi leaders in the province said more areas will fall to the Taliban, if security forces fail to retake the areas controlled by the militants.
Nazir Mohammad Niazi, a commander of a public uprising group in Badakhshan, urged government not to stop military operations in the province.
However, security officials did not provide details about why the military operations were stopped.
“It does not mean that we are not allowed [to fight]. We are waiting. Once we pave the ground for ourselves, then were going to take action,” said Sakhidad Haidari, security chief at the police headquarters.
Badakhshan police said that they will soon launch a large-scale offensive in the province to restrict militants’ activities and retake areas controlled by the Taliban.http://www.tolonews.com/en/afghanistan/24327-end-of-military-operation-in-badakhshan-raises-concerns
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