KHAAR (Bajaur Agency), Dec 9: The political authorities on Friday deported 40 Afghans who had been arrested for crossing into the tribal area here without legal documents. Official sources said the Afghans had been deported at the Ghakhi border crossing point. They were among 130 Afghans who were arrested after they had crossed into the Bajaur Agency in November.

Some of the detainees had been suspected of being involved in acts of sabotage in the agency and handed over to a joint interrogation team, the sources said.

The suspects had been taken to Peshawar for interrogation and after two weeks they were shifted to the Bajaur Agency for deportation to their country, the sources said.

An official said that about 70 Afghans were still in the custody of the political administration for illegal stay in the agency.

He said a crackdown was continuing against those Afghans who were living illegally in the agency. More Afghans had been held during the past three days, he added.

He said two of the detainees were high-ranking officials of the Afghan National Army and they carried their service cards on them. It was suspected that they were on a special mission, the official said.

Meanwhile, the political administration has warned tribal elders that they should not shelter Afghans and expel them from the agency within a week, otherwise action would be initiated against them.