Taliban close Afghan health facilities run by Swedish group

Kabul, July 17 

The Taliban forced a Swedish non-profit group to close 42 health facilities it runs in eastern Afghanistan, the organisation said Wednesday, the latest attempt by the insurgents to show strength amid negotiations to end the country’s nearly 18-year war.

The Taliban currently control nearly half of Afghanistan and are more powerful than at any time since the 2001 US-led invasion.

In Sweden, Sonny Mansson, the country director of the Swedish Committee for Afghanistan, told The Associated Press that the Taliban threatened the NGO’s staff by saying that if they do not close the facilities, “it would have consequences for themselves and their families.”  

Parwiz Ahmad Faizi, the group’s communications manager, said the facilities were closed after Afghan forces last week raided a clinic run by the NGO in Daimirdad district. The Afghan troops, acting on intelligence, were allegedly looking for suspected Taliban fighters hiding in the clinic. — AP