Afghan president dismisses interior minister amid spate of attacks

FILE PHOTO: Afghan president Ashraf Ghani speaks during a ceremony as the country starts vaccination campaign with AstraZeneca's COVID-19 vaccines from India, at the Afghan Presidential Palace in Kabul, Afghanistan February 23, 2021. Afghan Presidential Palace/ Handout via REUTERS

KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan President Ashraf Ghani has dismissed Interior Minister Masoud Andarabi, the national security council said in a statement on Friday, amid a spate of attacks against the country's security forces.

The current chief of army staff General Yasin Zia has been appointed acting defence minister until Asadullah Khalid recovers from an illness which has hospitalised him for months, the statement also said.