Massoud supports Noor, slams govt for failures

Monitoring Desk

KABUL: The head of Ahmad Shah Massoud Foundation Ahmad Wali Massoud on Monday declared his support to Ata Mohammad Noor regarding the ongoing controversies surrounding the Balkh province political leadership.

Speaking during a press conference in Mazar-e-Sharif city, Massoud said the deadlock over the Balkh government leadership can only be resolved with the implementation of the political pact regarding the national unity government.

He also accused the government leaders for hatching conspiracies to eliminate their political rivals and said the government leaders have failed to implement the unity government political pact.

Massoud also added that the government has no intention to organize the upcoming elections on time and warned that the ongoing political deadlock will negatively impact the unity of the people. Tensions remain high between Jamiat-e-Islami and the government after President Ashraf Ghani approved the resignation of Ata Mohammad Noor as the Balkh governor almost a month ago.

Noor says he had submitted his resignation as a guarantee to the government that he will step down if the demands of Jamiat-e-Islami are met by the government.

However, he says the government has approved his resignation as negotiations were underway insisting that none of the conditions and demands of the party have been met.