Afghanistan, Kabul, 1 December / corr Trend A. Hakimi/ Kabul police chief says criminals have close link and work hand in hand with terrorist networks in Afghanistan.
Mohammad Ayub Salangi, chief police of Kabul, said police had solid evidence that some of the criminals responsible for kidnapping foreigners and Afghan businessmen in Kabul were working hand in hand with terrorists.
More than 50 suspected kidnappers have been arrested this year, Salangi said, boasting that most kidnap gangs had been broken up by his police force.
A string of high-profile kidnappings in the capital has angered Afghans, many of whom say they feel less safe in the city this year than they did last year.
Experts say criminal gangs are often encouraged by the Taliban to kidnap Afghans and foreigners as a way of sowing insecurity in the country.
Criminal gangs are also believed to sell hostages to the Taliban, who then use them as leverage when negotiating the release of fellow insurgents from Afghan jails.