The Attorney General's Office of Afghanistan (AGO) on Sunday announced that it has decided to suspend Gul Nabi Ahmadzai, the commander of Kabul Garrison and Kabul police chief Hassan Shah Frogh.
This comes just days after Afghan police opened fire on protestors at a mass rally following a deadly bomb blast in the capital that left over 150 civilians dead and hundreds wounded.
“The attorney general of Afghanistan launched a transparent investigation into the incident, in line with that the job of the Kabul police chief, and the Kabul garrison commander has been suspended,” said AGO spokesman Jamshid Rasuli.
Government leaders tasked the AGO to probe the shooting incident, he said.
Five protestors were killed and over 20 others were wounded after police opened fire on them.
The mass rally was in protest against government for failing to prevent attacks in Kabul city following the May 31 deadly truck bombing in Wazir Akbar Khan area, which is not only in the heart of the city but is also in the diplomatic zone.
Following the incident Kabul garrison commander called on the public to stay away from demonstrations due to the “sensitive security situation.”
Lt. Gen. Gul Nabi Ahmadzai, warned the public at a press conference last Friday that they had information that terrorist organizations were planning attacks at such gatherings and demonstrations.
The protestors later called on President Ashraf Ghani and CEO Abdullah Abdullah to step down from their posts over failure to fix the ongoing security threats in the country.
Meanwhile, the presidential palace has welcomed the suspension of the two officials.
“President of the Islamic republic of Afghanistan welcomes the decision made by the attorney general of the country regarding the suspension of commander of Kabul garrison and Kabul police chief which is indicating the rule of law and the implementation of demands of the people,” the presidential palace statement states.
“Over the past week the government has been in touch with members of the national assembly and has discussed the demands of the people with regards to the recent incidents,” the statement reads.
“The attorney general of the country has independently and transparently probed the issue and the final assessments will be shared with the people,” concludes the statement.