Hundreds of weapons collected as Afghans voluntarily hand in arms

ASADABAD, Afghanistan, Sept. 25 (Xinhua) -- The Afghan security forces have collected hundreds of pieces of weapons as locals willingly handed over their arms and ammunition to local authorities in Afghanistan's eastern Kunar province on Sunday.

"The weapons handed over to local authorities today include nine anti-aircraft guns, 135 pieces of U.S.-made M16 assault rifles, 65 AK-47 rifles, 19 pieces of mortars, several RPG-7 and scores of light and heavy weapons, besides thousands of bullets," Ghaziabad district chief Qari Zia Ur-Rahman told reporters.

At a ceremony attended by Defense Ministry officials, they called upon people to hand over their weapons to the Taliban-led caretaker government.

"The weapons collected in Ghaziabad district will be handed over to the relevant security agencies through a transparent process," Mawlawi Sayedullah, an official from the Defense Ministry, said at the ceremony.

Following the hasty withdrawal of the U.S.-led coalition forces in August last year, a large amount of military equipment, including thousands of military vehicles, light and heavy firearms, plenty of ammunition went missing in Afghansitan.

The Afghan caretaker administration has been trying to collect arms and ammunitions from individuals as parts of efforts to ensure lasting peace in the war-torn country.