The plan will include merging 10,000 local policemen with local army forces and others with the ANP. The government has started implementing a plan to merge the Afghan Local Police with Afghan Local Army and the Afghan National Police, officials said on Friday.
According to Interior Affairs Ministry, of 24,000 local police force members, 10,000 will be merged with the local army and 10,000 with the Afghan National Police. The remaining will be sent to retirement, the ministry said.
“The local police forces will be merged with local army in their own areas,” a Defense Ministry spokesman Fawad Aman said. “First, they should qualify for serving in the ranks of local army and then they will pursue army’s training.”
Analysts said the implementation of the plan under current circumstances will face some obstacles.
“Evacuation from any area will benefit the Taliban,” said Massoud Raghib, a military affairs analyst, referring to the plan for merging local police with local army.
“The local forces are the most effective forces… So far, they have been fighting against the enemy with courage and high morale,” said Abdul Zahir Tamim, an MP.
Recently, the Afghan government separated the Public Protection Forces, Border Security Forces and Traffic Police from the structure of the Ministry of Interior Affairs.
