With Eye To China Investment Taliban Now Preserve Buddhas
MES AYNAK, Afghanistan (AP) – Ancient Buddha statues sit in meditative serenity in caves carved into the cliffs of rural Afghanistan. Hundreds of meters below is what is believed to be the largest copper deposit in the world. Afghanistan’s Taliban leaders are pinning their hopes on Beijing to turn this rich vein into revenue to save the money-starving country amid crippling international sanctions. Fighters standing guard on the rocky slope may have once thought of destroying the Buddhas with terracotta....