Afghanistan, Kabul, 27 October / corr Trend A.Hakimi/ The defence minister was summoned before Parliament to answer questions about the arming of border tribes against Taliban militants. The Defense and Territorial Integrity Commission forced Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak to face questions on Sunday about the amount of control the government would have over tribes it uses to combat Islamic militants who regularly cross the border from Pakistan. The United States recently announced plans to give weapons and training to residents living along the border with Pakistan, an area which has seen a surge in violence over the last year.
The United States, Afghan and NATO officials often accuse Pakistan of failing to prevent militants from crossing the border to launch attack on Afghan soil. Wardak said the ministry's main priority was to increase the number of troops serving in the Afghan army and he pointed out that, this year, about 50% of all operations were Afghan-led.