Pakistan Airlines suspends Afghan operations citing Taliban interference

FILE PHOTO: A Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) passenger plane prepares to take off from the Benazir International airport in Islamabad, Pakistan, February 9, 2016. REUTERS/Faisal Mahmood

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) -Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) suspended flights to the Afghan capital, Kabul, on Thursday after what it called heavy handed interference by Taliban authorities, including arbitrary rule changes and intimidation of staff.

The suspension took place as the Taliban government ordered the airline, the only international company operating regularly out of Kabul, to cut ticket prices to levels seen before the fall of the Western-backed Afghan government in August.