The United Nations Mission for Afghanistan and the ministry of defence have stopped paying "demobilized" soldiers after extortion attempts by regional commanders, a United Nations spokesman said on Sunday.
"Afghanistan's new beginning program following the request from the ministry of defence has informed that there will be no more cash payments for any demobilised soldier," Manoel de Almeida e Silva told a news conference in Kabul.
"The reason for the stop (of payment) is the extortion of these moneys paid to ex-soldiers by some commanders," he said.
He said that after the extortion of money was revealed in north-eastern Kunduz province the cash payment to the demobilised soldiers will be also halted elsewhere, where the pilot project was to be started on Tuesday.
"...this measure would have gone into effect with the start of the remaining DDR pilot project," he said.
"But now the ministry of defence and the ANBP have decided that this measure takes immediate effect," he added.
The UN-backed Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (DDR) campaign piloted in four major cities since last October is aimed at disarming some 100,000 to 200,000 former militias who fought Russians and later ousted Taleban from power in 2001.
It is also aimed at reducing the power of regional warlords who held sway over the large parts of the country, failing president Hamid Karzai's US-backed administration to extend its authority behind the capital Kabul.
Yet, so far, some 5,475 men have been disarmed in the four ongoing pilot projects in the country and 4,257 weapons have been collected from militias, he said.
Another 5,370, militiamen have been demobilised in north-eastern Kunduz, south-eastern Paktia, Kabul and northern Parwan provinces, according to the UN spokesman.
Efforts, under a US-led programme are underway to build Afghanistan's multi-ethnic national army being recruited from ordinary citizens including volunteers from the former militiamen.
The new army which currently numbers around 7,500 soldiers is planned to be a 70,000-strong force.
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