Hekmatyar’s Hezb-i-Islami planning anti-govt protests in Kabul

Gulbuddin Hekmatyar’s Hezb-i-Islami party is expected to hold anti-government demonstrations in Kabul on Friday, in protest over what they claim is government’s failure to fulfil its side of the peace agreement.

Hekmatyar says the demonstrations will lead to the ousting of government leaders.

“We will give a ten-day deadline at the end of the demonstrations on Friday. If our demands are not met, our demonstrations will continue in all the provinces of the country,” said Hekmatyar.

“Then our demand will be something else. All our demands will turn to one; Resignation; resignation of the government,” he added.

At the same time, members of the public consider peaceful demonstrations to be the right of every citizen; but they say the protests should not cause chaos in the city.

Hekmatyar once again raised the issue of peace talks and said that he expects the Doha talks to fail.

Hekmatyar has in the past accused government of not complying with the peace agreement reached with his party in 2016.

The former resistance fighter returned to Kabul after the peace deal was sealed following almost 20 years in exile.

But according to him, about 3,000 Hezb-i-Islami prisoners are still being held in Afghan prisons. He warned that he would surround the Presidential Palace in order to get “justice for his party”.