Afghan soccer official charged with sexual assault evades arrest attempt
Afghan special operations failed to arrest the fugitive former chairman of Afghanistan’s soccer federation who is accused of sexually harassing female players.
Former chairman of Afghanistan’s soccer federation, Keramuddin Karim, who faces charges of sexual assault, appeared to successfully evade an arrest attempt by Afghan special operations on Sunday in Panjshir Province.
Panjshir is an ethnic Tajik area that has allowed for the protection of Karim due to his history in the province where he was an insurgent commander during the war against the Soviets in the 1980s.
Officials in the province justified the failure of the operation by claiming they had not been consulted before the attempted arrest, and that Mr. Keram was not at home when the Afghan forces arrived.
“For this operation, no coordination was made with the governor office, security forces and judicial organization in the province,” said Mohammad Amin Sediqi, the acting governor of Panjshir.
Back in July President Ashraf Ghani called on the people of Panjshir and the head of the council responsible for negotiations the Taliban and who has political allies in the region, Abdullah Abdullah, to “expel” Mr. Keram from the province and “enforce the rule of law.”
President Ghani stated, “I will suspend and help prosecute any official engaged in corruption or abuse of authority, no matter where or at what location".
However, it appears that Keram is protected by his own tribe in Panjshir and well-armed militia, in addition to the support he receives from heavyweight government officials in the province.