The Taliban is investigating an Afghan man’s claim to be 140 years old – which, if verified, would make him the oldest person ever to have lived.
Aqel Nazir, who lives in the country’s eastern Khost province, insists he was born in the 1880s, meaning he would have been in his thirties during the Third Anglo-Afghan War in 1919.
He says he remembers celebrating the end of the conflict alongside King Amanullah Khan, the Afghan leader who launched a jihad, or holy war, against the British in an attempt to gain full independence and conquer territory in British India.
“I was in the palace with King Amanullah Khan,” Mr Nazir recalled. “I was over 30 at the time and I remember saying that the British had fled and knelt down.
“Everyone was happy and thanked King Amanullah Khan for chasing the British away. Many leaders accompanied us to the Arg [presidential palace], but now all of them have passed away.”
The war led to Afghanistan, which had been a British protectorate, regaining control of its foreign affairs.
However, the monarch’s ambitious plans to seize provinces in British India failed and he agreed to recognise the border between the two states.
‘His siblings are nearly 100’
Mr Nazir is believed not to have any documents to support his claim, but it has prompted the Taliban, which controls Afghanistan, to launch an investigation.
Mustaghfar Gurbaz, a Taliban spokesman for the province, said a special civil registration team had been dispatched to assess Mr Nazir’s age.
“If confirmed by documents or assessments, we will work to register him as the oldest person in the world,” said Mr Gurbaz.
Mr Nazir lives in the hills of Khost surrounded by a large, multi-generational family who also maintain he is the world’s oldest person.
“I am 50 years old. He is my grandfather, and I have my grandchildren as well,” said Khyal Wazir, one of Mr Nazir’s grandsons.
Another grandson, Abdul Hakim Sabari, said: “We request the government confirm our grandfather’s age using an ID or any other scientific method or documents, to prove he is 140 years old.”
Khayal Nazir, one of Mr Nazir’s sons, added: “His brother and two sisters are nearly 100 years old.”
The world’s current verified oldest living person is Inah Canabarro Lucas, a Brazilian nun who turned 116 – more than two decades younger than Mr Nazir claims to be – last June.
However, Deolira Gliceria Pedro da Silva, another Brazilian woman, is attempting to take her title.
Ms Pedro da Silva says she turned 120 last month and is hoping to have her claim verified by Guinness World Records.
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