Violence has erupted over gold mining activities in northern Afghanistan, leaving casualties in Takhar province, according to Taliban authorities and local residents.
The spokesman for the Ministry of Mines and Petroleum, Humayoun Afghan, said on Tuesday that a confrontation occurred between workers of a contracted mining company and residents of Chah Ab district following disagreements over gold extraction. He confirmed that the incident resulted in human and material losses, adding that a ministerial delegation has been dispatched to the area to investigate.
Afghan did not specify whether fatalities were recorded or provide details on when the clash began in the rural district, which borders Tajikistan.
However, a resident of the area said tensions had been building due to alleged harassment by miners brought in from other provinces. According to the resident, violence broke out after mining activities destroyed a water source relied upon by local communities for drinking.
“The locals rebelled against them with stones and sticks,” the resident said on Monday, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons. He claimed that several people were killed during the confrontation and that the miners later fled the area.
Efforts to obtain comments from local officials and medical personnel in Takhar were unsuccessful.
Afghanistan is rich in natural resources, including gold, marble, coal, gemstones and other minerals. Studies by the United States and the United Nations in 2010 and 2013 estimated the country’s underground resources, including copper and lithium, to be worth about one trillion dollars.
The Taliban administration has pledged to improve security nationwide while seeking both domestic and foreign investment to develop the mining sector, which it views as a vital source of revenue as international aid continues to decline.
