The Taliban have overrun a key security outpost in Aseya-e-Khakbad area of Maidan Wardak’s Jalrez district, killing one security force and wounding two others, according to a member of Maidan Wardak Provincial Council.
Ahmad Jafari, a member of Maidan Wardak Provincial Council, said that Aseya-e-Khakbad security checkpoint was under Taliban threat for a long time. He said the forces posted in the checkpoint repeatedly called on Maidan Wardak police to send them aerial support but to no avail.
Mehdi Rasikh, who represents Maidan Wardak in the Parliament, wrote on Facebook that the security outpost fell to the Taliban due to lack of required military equipment. He said top security officials were taken on board and were asked to send reinforcement forces.
Addressing the general session of the Parliament today, February 22, Ghulam Hossein Naseri, another MP from the province, warned a big catastrophe was on the way if the government did not take any action to secure Sar Cheshma area, where the security outpost is located.
Overwhelmed by the insecurity and carelessness of the Afghan government, the local Hazaras created a local militia a few years ago aimed at defending their territories against the Taliban and Kochis.
The militia, however, has been changed into a matter of controversy between the locals and the government in recent years. Most recently, the government has deployed hundreds of commando forces in Beshud district with heavy weapons and military vehicles apparently in a mission to arrest the militia commander known as Alipoor.
The two sides, who are a foe to the Taliban, are now in a standby mode in Behsud against each other.
The fall of Aseya-e-Khakbad security outpost provoked widespread criticisms among Afghan social media users complaining that the government hesitates to provide support for a local security outpost in Jalriz but kill locals and deploys commando forces to Behsud.
This is while on January 29, 11 people were killed and a dozen others were wounded after policemen, commanded by former Maidan Wardak Police Chief Allahdad Fedaee, opened fire at people gathered in a peaceful protest held in Behsud district of Maidan Wardak province.
Maidan Wardak in Southwest of Kabul is one of the most insecure provinces in the country where the Taliban militants control many districts including Jalriz.
