Badakhshan’s Kohistan District Fully Cleared of Taliban

Local security officials on Wednesday said that Badakhshan’s Kohistan district has been completely cleared of Taliban militants.

Alike Wardoj and Yamgan districts, Kohistan has been a key district in Badakhshan province, where the Taliban have often launched coordinated attacks in a bid to take control of the district.

The provincial police chief Saber Arian today confirmed that Kohistan district has been fully cleared of Taliban insurgents and that voter registration drive could be launched by the Independent Election Commission (IEC) in the district.

According to local officials, the district has been cleared of Taliban before the starting day of a week-long government’s ceasefire. 

Welcoming the security measures being taken by the security forces, the IEC provincial chief Hamidullah Baloch said that after receiving the election materials, the commission soon will begin the voter registration process in the district.

Akhtar Mohammad Khairzada, the provincial deputy governor, meanwhile, said that preparations are underway to transfer the election materials in Kohistan district and that soon they will begin the process.

This comes as according to IEC officials in Badakhshan, since the beginning of the voter registration drive, roughly 200,000 people have been registered in the province to vote in the upcoming parliamentary and district council elections which is due to be held on October 20th this year.