Afghan man claims he's 140 years old; Taliban launch probe to confirm age of 'world's oldest man'

A claim made by an Afghan man that he is a 140-year-old is being investigated by the Taliban. If confirmed, his age would make him the oldest person to have ever lived.

According to a report by The Telegraph, Aqel Nazir, who insists that he was born in 1880s, lives in the Khost province of Afghanistan.

As per Nazir's claim, he would have been in his 30s during the Third Anglo-Afghan war of 1919: the man has claimed that he was not only there during the war, but that he also celebrated the end of the conflict between the Afghans and the British.

According to the publication's report, he said, "I was in the palace with King Amanullah Khan. 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."

Nazir's family's claims

Though Nazir claims to be 140-year-old, he holds no documents to support his claims: hence the Taliban investigation.

A Taliban spokesperson, Mustaghfar Gurbaz, said that a special civil registration team has been prepared to probe Nazir's age claims.

According to The Telegraph, Mustaghfar said, "If confirmed by documents or assessments, we will work to register him as the oldest person in the world."

One of Nazir's grandsons, Khyal Wazir, is himself 50 years old now, and has grandchildren of his own.

Another grandson of Nazir, 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."

Even one of Nazir's sons, Khayal Nazir, told the publication that the man's brother and two sisters had nearly hit 100 too, suggesting that there could be some credence to Nazir's claims.