Almost a year after it stormed to power, the Taliban announced a deal with a foreign company to manage airports in Afghanistan.
In August 2021, the Kabul airport had been the target of a major terror attack. Over 180 people had died.
Taliban said that a firm named GAAC Solutions, which is based in Abu Dhabi, will manage airports in Herat, Kabul, and Kandahar. Reports said that the United Arab Emirates did not immediately acknowledge the deal.
Abdul Ghani Baradar, the Deputy Prime Minister in the Taliban government said that it was a renewal of an airport ground-handling agreement with the UAE.
What raised eyebrows was that Qatar had been in line to manage the airports, but the deal did not go through as Doha wanted to deploy its own security personnel at the airports.
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In August 2021, after the Taliban had captured Kabul, and evacuation efforts were in full swing, an ISIS terrorist had targeted the Kabul airport. The suicide bomber had killed at least 170 Afghans, and 13 US soldiers.