INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
Afghanistan&s Defense Minister Yaqoub Mujahid on Sunday said American drones flying over Afghanistan are entering the country&s airspace
from Pakistan.Speaking at an accountability session in Kabul, Mujahid called on Pakistan to stop allowing the use of its airspace against
Afghanistan.He said the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan (IEA) did not have reliable radar detection systems in place but that the authorities
understand American drones are being launched in Pakistan.&The information is not accurate and clear; Americans completely destroyed our
radar system when they left [Afghanistan]
Again, according to the information we obtained, they [drones] enter Afghanistan through Pakistan and use Pakistan&s air space,& Mujahid
said.Pakistan has however rejected these claims and said its soil is not being used against Afghanistan.This comes after the US carried out
a drone strike on a house in Sherpur in Kabul on July 31
According to Washington, al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri was killed in the strike.The IEA has meanwhile rejected claims that al-Zawahiri
was killed in Kabul and said Sunday their investigation into these allegations is nearing an end.&The killing of al-Zawahiri was a claim by
America, until the investigation is finished, there are no new details,& said Mujahid.Mujahid said the IEA has shared its concerns about
drones in Afghanistan&s airspace with Washington.&This is a clear aggression of America in Afghanistan and we have raised our voice and
again America continues to do this and we condemn this action of America,& Mujahid said.Mujahid also reiterated calls for Afghan aircraft,
including planes and helicopters, flown to neighboring countries during the collapse of the former government, to be returned to
Afghanistan.So far, talks to have these aircraft returned have been fruitless.Also speaking Sunday was the IEA&s chief of army staff, Qari
Fasihuddin Fitrat, who said the current number of soldiers in the defense force totals 145,000.He also said the so-called National
Resistance Front has been unable to achieve anything and that the situation in Panjshir province is now under control.Fitrat stated that 60
military helicopters are currently in service and that 246 rescue flights have been carried out in the past few weeks
He said over 3,000 people have been saved from floods.According to him, other achievements made in the past few months by the defense
ministry include, among others, the deployment of about 25,000 troops to Afghanistan&s borders, the dismissal of 4,000 personnel,
transparent distribution of salaries and recruitment of new staff.The post Defense minister urges Pakistan to stop using its airspace
against Afghanistan first appeared on Ariana News.
