Afghan City Falls to Commander as Troops Fly In

[wicket]

http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nm/20040408/wl_nm/afghan_fighting_dc_5

Forces of a renegade adviser to President Hamid Karzai overran the capital of a northern province on Thursday, creating a fresh security headache for Afghanistan (news - web sites)'s Western-backed government.

General Abdul Rashid Dostum's largely ethnic Uzbek militia invaded Faryab from neighboring provinces on Wednesday, prompting the central government to send national troops there on Thursday in an attempt to maintain control.

"Dostum loyalists have entered Maimana city," Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalai told a news briefing. "This is an unconstitutional act of interference by General Dostum."

He said the commander of the Maimana's military forces General Mohammad Hashim Habibi had left the city with his men, while the governor, Anayatullah Anayat, was at the airport.

[RaulGroom]

1. That'd be a good title for Dubya's memiors

"Unconstituional Act of Interference."

[wicket]

2. BWAHAHAHAHA!!!

Too true :D

[Name removed]

3. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[Eye and Monkey]

4. bump

[hedgetrimmer]

5. Kicking this piece UP a notch!! n/t

[Supormom]

6. Kick

[Karenina]

7. How soon we forget...

:eyes: :kick:

[muriel_volestrangler]

8. now THIS is a civil war

There were fierce clashes in the western city of Herat last month after forces of a commander appointed by Karzai killed the son of the provincial governor. The son was also a cabinet minister.

Karzai rushed 1,500 troops of the national army -- which has a combat strength of only about 8,000 -- to Herat, prompting expressions of concern from the U.S. military that this took up resources that should be pursuing Taliban and al Qaeda militants.

Maybe the 130,000 US troops in Iraq ought to be pursuing the Taliban and al Qaeda, while the Afghans concentrate on getting one government for their country, instead of several warlords?