KABUL – *President Ashraf Ghani on Sunday rejected the resignations of theministers of interior and defense and the NDS chief and “asked them tocontinue their work”, Ghani’s Office said in a statement. *

“Wais Ahmad Barmak, Minister of Interior, Masoum Stanikzai, the NationalDirectorate of Security (NDS) chief and Tariq Shah Bahrami, the DefenseMinister officially handed in their resignation letters and the Presidentdid not accept them and asked these officials to continue their work andalso give him guides for better security,” according to the statement.

On Saturday, Ghani asked his security cabinet to step down, sourcesconfirmed.

According to sources, the reasons given by Ghani for the resignationsinclude last week’s rocket attack on the Presidential Palace, the recentGhazni attack and the increasing ANDSF casualty toll.

Also on Saturday, Afghanistan’s National Security Adviser Hanif Atmarresigned from his post.

Minutes after Atmar’s resignation, Ghani appointed his ambassador toWashington DC, Hamdullah Mohib, as his new National Security Adviser.

Atmar’s letter of resignation meanwhile stated that he is stepping down dueto “serious differences over policies and approaches at the top level ofgovernment.”

He said he differed in opinion “when it comes to national unity, nationalconsensus, peace and security political management, electoral affairs, goodgovernance and regional affairs.”

Atmar also stated that “because of my differences of these things in recentmonths I am stepping down because we haven’t reached a consensus.”

Atmar, 49, has been a close aide to President Ashraf Ghani since 2014.