Taliban kidnap dozens of bus passengers despite truce

KABUL, Aug 20 (AFP): Taliban insurgents kidnapped dozens of passengers after stopping three buses in northern Afghanistan on Monday, officials said, a day after the government announced a ceasefire with the Islamist militants.

Esmatullah Muradi, a spokesman for the governor of Kunduz province, said the kidnapping happened when three buses were traveling through Kunduz from Takhar province, on their way to the capital, Kabul.

"The buses were stopped by the Taliban fighters, passengers were forced to step down and they have been taken to an undisclosed location," Muradi said.

President Ashraf Ghani declared a provisional three-month ceasefire with the Taliban on Sunday to mark the Eid al-Adha holiday, even though fighting against the Western-backed government in Kabul and NATO coalition forces has increased.

The Taliban confirmed that "three buses packed with passengers" were in their custody.

"We decided to seize the buses after our intelligence inputs revealed that many men working with Afghan security forces were traveling to Kabul in these buses," Zabihullah Mujahid, a spokesman for the Taliban, said by telephone.