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Published 22 Nov, 2005 12:00am

British engineer faces gun-running charge

LONDON, Nov 21: A British electrical engineer arrested in Afghanistan last month has been charged with gun-running, the Foreign Office in London said on Monday. Peter Eaton, 52, from Milford Haven, west Wales, is accused with three other men — believed to be another Briton, an American and an Indian — of buying and selling weapons.

“We have visited him (Eaton) a number of times... in (the Afghan capital) Kabul,” a Foreign Office spokesman told AFP.

“We were informed by the court of the charges on Nov 17, which were buying and selling weapons.”

“One of our consular staff visited Peter Eaton and briefed him on what the court decided. The latest state of play is that the judge has 60 days to look at the case before the trial must take place.”

No details were released about the other detainees.

According to British media reports, the foreign nationals were detained in Kabul on Oct 12 and alleged to have had in their possession guns and fake badges representing the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO)-led International Security Assistance Force.

Eaton’s wife Anisa Ahmed has since expressed concern for his health, telling the BBC: “He’s in a very difficult position, he’s very stressed, his health is going really bad. He is not very well at all.”

Anisa Ahmed added: “Peter is not involved in any weapons or anything like that.”—AFP

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