DUSHANBE, March 16, 2016, Asia-Plus – Ms. Jamila Mirbozkhonova, 31, formerly correspondent for Dushanbe weekly Farazh , has been appointed spokeswoman for the Customs Service under the Government of Tajikistan, replacing Ms. Khumayro Mirova.

We will recall that Khumayro Mirova, known to be the second wife of a fugitive Tajik colonel, Gulmurod Halimov, left for Syria last month along with the couple''s four young children.

Mirova, 40, worked as a spokesperson for the State Customs Service, but her employer said she has been on a maternity leave since the summer of 2015.

Tajik media reported that Mirova became Halimov''s second wife 10 years ago.

Halimov, the former commander of the special police unit, known as OMON, disappeared in April 2015.  Halimov later appeared on a video to confirm that he had defected to the Islamic State militant group in Syria.

Tajik authorities say they were continuing efforts to capture Halimov.  They also say he has been seriously injured twice since leaving the country.