Local sources in Badakhshan province say that clashes over control of a gold mine in the Shahri Buzurg district have resulted in casualties.
Sources told the Hasht-e Subh Daily on Monday, October 27, that the fighting broke out between forces loyal to Emar, a local Taliban commander in Shahri Buzurg, and the group’s director of mines.
The clash took place in the Awiz village.
According to the sources, four people were either killed or injured in the confrontation, though Hasht-e Subh Daily could not independently verify this claim.
It is worth noting that most gold extraction projects in the Shahri Buzurg district are concentrated in the Awiz area.
Taliban commanders in the district reportedly collect extortion money from gold mining projects.
Earlier, Tajik project operators had clashed with Pashtun traders in the same area.
Residents of Shahri Buzurg say that the Taliban have been handing over local lands to Pashtun businessmen.
