* Availability of military uniforms a security concern
* Uniforms are used by insurgents during attacks
* Interior Ministry says the business is illegal
(For more on Afghanistan, click [ID:nAFPAK] )
By Hamid Shalizi
KABUL, Nov 22 (Reuters) - Shopkeeper Mohammed Zabi sells Afghan police and military uniforms on the open market, with just a couple of safeguards -- customers with long beards or rural accents are sent to look elsewhere for fear they could be insurgents.
Afghan militants often disguise themselves as soldiers or policemen for attacks, and buying a complete uniform in Kabul's hectic bazaar does not cost more than 800 Afghanis (${esc.dollar}17).
Just a few hundred metres from President Hamid Karzai's heavily fortified palace, tiny, crammed shops sell everything from standard-issue pistol holsters to outfits with a range of well-made security insignias.
The interior ministry says the trade is illegal, but shopkeepers insist they are only targeting legitimate buyers like security forces who lose or damage their uniforms.
"If the buyer doesn't have any ID, I can work out from his appearance why he wants to buy this stuff," 44 year-old Zabi told Reuters, standing between rows of army and police uniforms.
"If I get buyers with long beards, don't speak with a Kabul accent or don't have any ID then I don't sell," he said.
Zabi has a seal of official approval -- a contract to provide uniforms to the Interior Ministry, and says he faces no restrictions from the police or other government organisations.
Like many in the trade, he also has a license from the Independent Craftsmen's Union, which has dozens of members selling uniforms and other military gear in Kabul, he added.
But the trade is a risky one, officially banned for security reasons, with violence in Afghanistan at the highest level since the 2001 ouster of the Taliban.
"Buying or selling military equipment and police uniforms is absolutely illegal and the government will continue to shut such businesses," said ministry spokesman Zemari Bashary.
Shopkeepers reacted badly to efforts to photograph their wares, saying that after other media reports officials came to confiscate their stock -- and make them pay to get it back.
"Your pictures draw the attention of the government into our business which we don't want," said one from the angry crowd.
UNIFORMS USED BY INURGENTS
The Taliban won fame as a force dressed in shalwar kameez, the baggy trousers and long shirts worn by many Afghan men.
But they have often launched attacks on government buildings, military installations and aid organisations when hidden under all-enveloping burqas or dressed as police or army officials.
The outfits make it easier for them to get close to targets, and surprise the real security forces.
Earlier this month about eight Taliban fighters dressed as Afghan army soldiers attacked Jalalabad airport in eastern Nangarhar province, which serves as one of the biggest military bases for foreign forces.
Although the attack was successfully repelled and no Afghan or foreign troops died, it raised concerns over the availability of uniforms in open markets.
And it is not only Afghan gear being copied.
In Bush Bazaar, named for former U.S. President George W. Bush, dozens of garage-sized shops sell a range of U.S. military gear including uniforms, boots, binoculars, several types of knives and even night-vision goggles.
Obaid, another shopkeeper who goes by one name like many Afghans said customers in civilians clothes can buy from him if they say they are relatives of a member of the security forces.
"If I don't sell, they will just buy the same thing from other shops, so why should I turn that down."
(Editing by Emma Graham-Harrison and Sanjeev Miglani)
(If you have a query or comment on this story, send an email to news.feedback.asia@thomsonreuters.com)
Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
