 | Farce or comedy, you decide. |
KABUL - Afghan authorities have banned motorcycle riding and the sale of petrol in a restive southern province to help in the fight against Taleban insurgents, a security official said on Saturday.
| "Can they do that, Sonny?" |
Taleban guerrillas frequently use motorcycles for raids in Zabul province, scene of a wave of attacks on Afghan government and US-led international forces in the past two weeks. So authorities have banned motorcycles from the roads, and petrol sales as well, until all motorcycle owners can be issued with special cards.
"These will be known as 'drivers' licenses.' It's a new concept but we think it will work."
"Arrr! Sounds un-Islamic to me!" |
"Once the special cards are introduced, then anyone riding a motorcycle without one will be arrested, because then it will only be Taleban and the Hells Angels who won't have registered," said Shereen Shah, a senior army officer in the province. The ban on petrol sales was imposed to reinforce the motorbike ban, he said. It was expected to take two weeks for all motorbikes in the province to be registered and only then would the bans be lifted, Shah said. |