Kabul, Aug 24 : Afghan police have apprehended 42 individuals suspected of various crimes, including theft and kidnapping, in a series of operations over the past 24 hours, the Ministry of Interior Affairs said on Sunday.

The ministry said the alleged criminals were arrested following police operations in the provinces of Samangan, Faryab, Helmand, Paktia, Nimroz, Herat, Ghazni, Paktika, Ghor, Kunar, and Badghis, Xinhua News Agency reported.

The ministry noted that most detainees were linked to theft and smuggling cases.

All suspects have been transferred to the judicial organs for further investigation and potential legal action.

Earlier on Wednesday, the Ministry of Interior Affairs said that Afghan counter-narcotics police have thwarted two major drug trafficking attempts and arrested three suspected smugglers in northern Takhar and southern Zabul provinces.

According to the ministry, acting on intelligence tips, security forces launched two separate operations on the outskirts of Taluqan city, the capital of Takhar, and Shajoy district of Zabul, seizing 249 kg of opium and apprehending three traffickers. The detainees are under preliminary investigation and will be handed over to judicial organs for further legal action, the statement added.

In a related development, Afghan counter-narcotics police on Monday arrested 16 suspected drug traffickers and confiscated 872 kg of narcotics in western Herat province, the ministry reported.

In a similar action, Afghan police uncovered a quantity of weapons and ammunition during two separate operations in eastern Ghazni and southern Uruzgan provinces, the Ministry of Interior Affairs announced on Wednesday.

The contraband included 16 pieces of heavy and light arms, such as PK machine guns, M16 rifles, Kalashnikovs, assault rifles, and rocket launchers, discovered in Tirin Kot city, the capital of Uruzgan, and Jaghouri and Qara Bagh districts of Ghazni, the ministry said.

Additionally, authorities confiscated a substantial amount of ammunition and military equipment, including communication devices, explosives, and a large quantity of cartridges and bullets during the operations, it added.

/IANS