Afghan forces to take over some provinces in July

Afghan forces to take over some provinces in July

2011-03-23 04:10:39 GMT+7 (ICT)

KABUL (BNO NEWS) -- President Hamid Karzai on Tuesday announced Afghan forces will take responsibility for securing seven areas of the country in mid-July.

During a speech at a graduation ceremony of Afghan soldiers at the National Military Academy, Karzai said the areas include all of Kabul province, except for Sarubi district, the provinces of Panjsher and Bamyan; Herat city, the capital of western Herat province, Lashkargah, the provincial capital of Helmand, Mehtarlam, the capital of eastern Laghman province and Mazar-e-Sharif, capital of northern Balkh province.

The most volatile area in the list is Lashkargah, the capital of Helmand, a major opium poppy-growing province that has been regarded as a Taliban stronghold in the southern part of Afghanistan. The province had a 588 percent increase in civilian assassinations in 2010.


Karzai said the process would start with the provincial capitals and eventually extend to the districts. NATO-led international troops and US soldiers are scheduled to complete the transfer of responsibility to the Afghan police by 2014.

"The Process of handing over security to Afghanistan and the protection of this country would anyway be handled by the Afghan youth and wouldn't be reversible," the president said.

He insisted a successful transition depends on the international community, which should help the country with a number of national projects and programs of infrastructure. In addition, effective plans and proposals on good governance will be developed, while judicial reforms will be introduced to ensure justice.

Karzai reiterated that ending the devastating war was a priority in his government's agenda and said that some of those who had taken up arms against the government were civilians who suffered injustices.



"It is through peace that we could save our country from the clutches of al-Qaeda and other terror organizations and bless people with an honorable life under the Constitution," Karza said.

"We understand that these injustices and violations by the employees of the government and powerful individuals as well as the bombardments, house searches or arrests by the coalition and NATO forces have led to public grievance and resentment. Whatever the cause maybe, this bloody war has to stop and the country has to be guided towards better tomorrow," he added.

An assessment is underway for a number of other provinces and cities for the second phase of the transition.

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