Forum Views () 
Forum Replies ()  
 
 
Read more with google mobile :
Afghan interior, intel chiefs replaced over attack  
 
 
 
 
 
Yahoo!
My Yahoo!
Mail
More Yahoo! Services
Account Options
New User? Sign Up
Sign In
Help
Yahoo! Search
web search
  
 
    
 
 
 
 
 
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
 
 
 
Africa
Europe
Latin America
Middle East
North America
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Afghan interior, intel chiefs replaced over attack
 
 
  
 
 By MATTHEW PENNINGTON,Associated Press Writer -
 Monday, June  7
 
 
Send
 
IM Story
 
Print
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
KABUL, Afghanistan – Afghan President Hamid Karzai on Sunday removed two of the country's top security officials _ each with longtime ties to the Americans _ over last week's attack on a national conference to explore peace with the Taliban.
 
The removals of the interior minister and intelligence chief surprised U.S. officials and may cause major disruption within Afghanistan's intelligence and security establishment at a critical juncture _ as the U.S. and NATO escalate the war and the Afghan government commits to offering peace to the insurgents. The move is likely to fuel speculation over differences within the Karzai administration over its efforts to reconcile with the Taliban _ including the possible release of hundreds of detained militant suspects.
 
The head of the National Directorate of Security, Amrullah Saleh, was a senior figure in the Northern Alliance that helped the U.S. oust the Taliban regime in 2001. As a young man, Interior Minister Hanif Atmar served in Afghanistan's Communist-era intelligence agency and fought mujahedeen opposed to the Soviet occupation.
 
"It's a very significant event. There will be a massive fall-out from these resignations both in the Interior Ministry and the NDS as alliances are shuffled," said Candace Rondeaux, senior analyst on Afghanistan for the International Crisis Group think tank.
 
"They appear to be forced resignations, and reflect significant worries of Karzai's administration over the loyalty of those leading key security agencies in the country," she said.
 
Replacing the security chiefs comes after Karzai's May visit to Washington which had eased strains in the bilateral relationship. U.S. officials say the Afghan delegation had impressed with their preparations for the visit, widely seen as a boost to Karzai after a turbulent year marred by prolonged controversy over his re-election in a fraud-marred poll last August.
 
"Both the ministers of interior and intelligence are people we admire and whose service we appreciate," Pentagon press secretary Geoff Morrell said. He also noted the U.S. had favored Atmar for the interior ministry job.
 
But Gen. Stanley McChrystal, commander of U.S. and NATO forces in Afghanistan, said in a statement he respected the Afghan president's authority to make this "difficult decision."
 
He said he remained confident in Karzai's "ability to appoint credible replacements to lead these critical organizations."
 
Saleh, an ethnic Tajik, had served as intelligence chief since 2004 and had a long-standing relationship with the CIA in the fight against the Taliban and al-Qaida.
 
British-educated Atmar, a former education minister, was first appointed interior minister in a 2008 Cabinet reshuffle aimed at rooting out high-level corruption in Karzai's government. He was reappointed after Karzai's re-election.
 
Sunday's resignations were a surprise _ not least as the attack on the jirga was thwarted. Security officials have rarely faced punishment or resigned over previous major attacks in the capital.
 
Two Taliban militants fired rockets where some 1,500 delegates _ including lawmakers, tribal and religious chiefs _ had gathered in a grand tent. One of the missiles landed about 200 yards (meters) away, but no delegates were hurt. The militants were later killed in a gunbattle with security forces in a house about a mile (1.5 kilometers) away.
 
Saleh said evidence showed that the Haqqani network, a Pakistan-based Afghan Taliban faction with close ties to al-Qaida, was behind the attack.
 
Interior Ministry spokesman Zemeri Bashary said the two attackers were able to breach security by dressing as a couple _ one in a man's street clothes and the other in a woman's burqa, and clutching a Kalashnikov rifle and a grenade launcher wrapped up in cloth like a swaddled baby.
 
Karzai's office said in a statement he had accepted the resignations because Atmar and Saleh had given unsatisfactory explanations. He appointed their deputies Munir Mangal at the interior ministry and Ibrahim Spinzada at intelligence as acting chiefs.
 
Atmar said he and Saleh met with Karzai on Sunday for two-and-a-half hours. When the president said that leadership had been lacking in the security measures, Atmar said he offered his resignation.
 
"The president of Afghanistan has lost trust in our capability to protect national events," Saleh told reporters in the capital, after what he described as a "tough conversation" with Karzai.
 
Saleh said there were "tens of other reasons" that he resigned, but he declined to give any of them, saying that doing so would have repercussions for those still working in the government.
 
It's unclear if the tentative push for peace to end the insurgency has so far caused any fractures in Karzai's government. His ethnic Tajik and Uzbek allies from the Northern Alliance who fought the Taliban for years will be less sympathetic to cutting a deal than his supporters among the Pashtuns _ Karzai's own ethnic community and the overwhelming majority of the insurgents.
 
Washington supports Karzai's plans to win over lower-rung militants but remains skeptical about negotiations with insurgent leaders _ although such a strategy could be key to the eventual withdrawal of U.S. forces from the country.
 
U.S. officials contend the Taliban leadership _ which is demanding the complete withdrawal of foreign troops from Afghanistan _ feels little reason to negotiate because it believes it is winning the war which is only growing ever more bloody nearly nine years after it began.
 
Karzai made his first official response to the jirga Sunday by ordering a review of all cases of Taliban suspects in Afghan jails and the release of those detained on doubtful evidence.
 
The decree did not directly address the issue of the hundreds of Afghans being held in U.S. military custody.
 
Spokesman Col. Wayne Shanks said the U.S. military was discussing with the government an approach to all the jirga's recommendations. He noted that the American military had already started the process of handing control of the main U.S. prison in Afghanistan, at Bagram Air Field, to the government.
 
On Sunday, five NATO troops _ including four Americans _ were killed in three separate incidents, the coalition said.
 
Three U.S. troops died in a vehicle accident in southern Afghanistan, and a fourth was killed in an insurgent attack in the country's east, said U.S. military spokesman Lt. Col. Joseph T. Breasseale. The fifth NATO service member _ who was not immediately identified _ was killed when a makeshift bomb exploded in southern Afghanistan.
 
___
 
Associated Press Writers Rahim Faiez, Heidi Vogt, Rohan Sullivan and Amir Shah in Kabul, Anne Gearan traveling with Defense Secretary Robert Gates and Mirwais Khan in Kandahar contributed to this report.
 
 
 
 
   
 
 
 
 
 
 
Recommend
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Send
 
IM Story
 
Print
 
 
 
 
 
 
Related Articles
 
 
Activists expelled as Israel resists Gaza inquiry pressure AFP -  6 minutes ago
 
DR Congo suspends police chief over activist murder AFP -  54 minutes ago
 
BP sucking up 10,000 barrels daily from US oil leak AFP - 1 hour 14 minutes ago
 
Pope urges end to bloodshed in Mideast AFP - 1 hour 26 minutes ago
 
Two men charged in 'jihad' plot against Americans abroad AFP - 1 hour 40 minutes ago
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
News Search
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
Top Stories
 
 
 
 
Activists expelled as Israel resists Gaza inquiry pressure
Merkel takes aim at spending to balance German budget
Juncker plays down fears for eurozone
Karzai orders freeing of inmates held without grounds
New world record for longest poker game
 
 
 
 More Top Stories »
 
 
 
ADVERTISEMENT
 
  
 
 
 
 
Most Popular
 
 
 
 
Most Viewed
 
Most Recommended
 
 
 
 
New world record for longest poker game
 
Obama vows help as BP sees oil spill progress
 
Eurozone debt could squeeze banks: experts
 
Nadal calls truce with title rival Soderling
 
New anti-cancer drug extends life of melanoma victims
 
 
 More Most Viewed »
 
 
 
 
 
Hubble catches planet being devoured by its star
 
The point about pain: New study sheds light on acupuncture
 
Ocean fish could disappear in 40 years: UN
 
Paris museum burglar grabs 120-million-dollar art haul
 
US team creates first 'synthetic life'
 
 
 More Most Recommended »
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
Elsewhere on Yahoo!
 
 
 
 
Financial news on Yahoo! Finance
 
 
Stars and latest movies
 
 
Best travel destinations
 
 
 
 
 
  
 
 
 
 
 
More on Yahoo! News
 
 
Home
Singapore
Asia Pacific
World
Business
Entertainment
Sports
Technology
Subscribe to our news feeds
Top StoriesMy Yahoo!RSS
» More news feeds | What are news feeds?
 
Also on Yahoo
 
Answers
Groups
Mail
Messenger
Mobile
Travel
Finance
Movies
Sports
Games
» All Yahoo! Services
 
Site Highlights
 
Singapore
Full Coverage
Most Popular
Asia Entertainment
Photos
World Cup 2010
 
 
 
 Copyright © 2010 Yahoo! Southeast Asia Pte. Ltd. (Co. Reg. No. 199700735D). All Rights Reserved.
Terms of Service |
Privacy Policy |
Community |
Intellectual Property Rights Policy |
Help
  
   
 
 
    
   
 
Other News on Monday,  7 June 2010 Afghan interior minister, secret service chief resign  
Merkel takes aim at spending to balance German budget  
Karzai orders freeing of inmates held without grounds  
British cabbie who shot dead 12 was 'nicest man': sons  
Five NATO soldiers killed in Afghanistan  
Afghan interior, intel chiefs replaced over attack  
Yemen holds U.S., French students on security concerns
|  
Juncker plays down fears for eurozone  
Karzai orders freeing of inmates held without grounds  
5 NATO troops killed in 1 day in Afghanistan  
Colombian air force says kills six rebels in attack
|  
Kenya says ready to defend against al Shabaab rebels
|  
Cyclone Phet hits Pakistan's coastline: officials  
N.Korea warns of retaliation for South's UN campaign  
Foxconn to give Chinese workers another pay raise  
Small Plane Crashes Into Long Island Building  
Shrek rules North American box office for third week  
Sandra Bullock calls personal life an explosion
|  
Shrek laughs its way past two new comedies
|  
Iran Red Crescent to send two aid ships to Gaza  
Somali rebels to release message from hostage: SITE  
Facebook streams updates to  websites  
Clinton warns of likely Iranian 'stunt' ahead of UN sanctions vote  
Next Japan PM to tap fiscal reformers
|  
As record sales drop, singers flock to festivals  
Afghan interior, intel chiefs replaced over attack  
US dollar flexes muscle as crisis stalks markets  
Israeli patrol kills four militants in diving gear
|  
UN warns climate change could trigger 'mega-disasters'  
Not forgotten: Remains of US soldier sought on Vietnam hill  
North Korea assembly holds rare session amid sanctions push
|  
Tornadoes, Storms Kill At Least 7, Injure Dozens In Midwest Rampage  
Marine sponge drug extends breast cancer survival: study  
Costa Rica puts brakes on popular stem cell tourism
|  
Activists expelled as Israel resists Gaza inquiry pressure  
Murder Suspect, Porn Actor Killed After Jumping From Cliff  
Indian court convicts eight in Bhopal gas disaster
|  
US, Egypt hold talks in wake of flotilla raid  
Indian court convicts eight over Bhopal disaster  
Rare Javan rhino found dead in Indonesia  
Foxconn gives China workers dramatic wage hike  
12 children die in Indonesia bridge collapse  
Verdicts due 25 years after Bhopal gas disaster  
Tight security for China college entrance exams  
Six rescued after three days in flooded China mine  
Yahoo users to gain more access to Facebook
|  
Japan's new PM enjoys 60 percent support in polls  
Asia Foundation new head to back 'quiet champions'  
N.Korea lawmakers to meet amid rising tensions  
China Bank of Communications' rights issue reduced  
Agricultural Bank of China IPO size doubt: report  
Asian stocks, euro fall on US jobs data, Hungary fears  
Foxconn gives China workers dramatic wage hike  
AT&T in talks on buying stake in Reliance: WSJ  
Tokyo shares dive on euro worries, weak US data  
Global downturn a thing of the past for Asia's top IT show  
Sharp improves wall display technology  
Racism still blights southern US juries: study  
Miley Cyrus draws crowd during first performance in Spain  
Abu Dhabi 'leaning tower' beats Pisa: press  
Sao Paulo holds 'world's biggest' gay parade  
Tourism-dependent Florida braces for hit as next Gulf oil front  
Rock in Rio Madrid festival to return in 2012: organisers  
African festival crowns films on peacekeepers, polygamy  
Twilight sequel shines at MTV Movie Awards
|  
The rise of TV's Anti-Mom
|  
Shrek laughs its way past two new comedies
|  
Dilemmas and drugs: reality hosts swap stories
|  
The Good Life: Julianna Margulies
|  
30 Rock producer keeps laughs flowing
|  
A day in the life of Parks and Recreation writers
|  
Iran is 'special case' for UN atomic watchdog  
Ex-Union Carbide officials sentenced over Bhopal leak
|  
Karzai defends removal of Afghan security chiefs  
Stocks drop on Hungary, US fears  
Israel rejects international inquiry into lethal raid
|  
Allen in shooting flurry as Celtics even the score  
Suicide bombers attack Afghan police compound  
Turkey heaps pressure on Israel over Gaza at talks
|  
Stampede unrelated to World Cup organisation: FIFA  
Investigators Countinue To Search For Missing Second Grader  
Blast hits police compound in southern Afghanistan  
Search To Continue For Former Police Sgt. Drew Peterson's Fourth Wife  
Mild Quake Wakes Los Angeles  
Rangel Launches Bid For 21st Term  
Police targeted in Iraq attacks
|  
Study: Selenium Supplements Do Not Prevent Cancer  
Yemen arrests 50 foreigners
|  
Shooting At Florida Restaurant Leaves 5 Dead  
ICC nears deal to prosecute state aggression
|  
Regular, Earlier Bed Times Linked To Higher Scores In Young Children  
Darfur sees bloodiest month in two years: U.N.
|  
"Shrek" Still Rules Box Office; "Greek," "Killers" Place 2nd And 3rd  
Nigeria cleans poisoned villages, treats children
|  
US seeks 'new ways' to handle Gaza after boat deaths: Biden  
N.Korean leadership 'sacks premier'  
Clinton to begin L.America tour amid security concerns  
Sri Lanka says could hang former army chief  
Global Weather-Celsius  
Jobs headlines Apple event, new iPhone in the wings
|  
Lost WWII battlefield found in Papua New Guinea  
Ex-China PM's 'diary' sheds new light on Tiananmen  
Connecticut to ask Google if collected WiFi data
|  
Iran's Ahmadinejad to visit China  
Renault, Nissan eye Ssangyong takeover  
Malaysia calls for measures to halt oil price fixing  
S.Korea envoy to visit China over warship sinking  
India's Reliance telecom in talks for stake sale: source  
Guilty verdicts 25 years after India's gas disaster  
Stocks tumble on Hungary, US fears  
Simon Cowell honoured at British television awards  
Malaysia's Proton says Volkswagen ditches tie-up talks  
Cross-border rules hampering ASEAN trade: industry  
Li hopes autism film alternative to blockbusters  
Former Stereophonics drummer Cable found dead
|  
Israel breaks ground with opera on Dead Sea shores
|  
Greece at new risk of being pushed off euro  
Bodies of missing Tenn. mom, Jo Ann Bain, and daughter found  
Female Breasts Are Bigger Than Ever  
AMD Trinity Accelerated Processing Units Now in Volume Production  
The Avengers (2012 film), made the second biggest opening- and single-day gross of all-time  
AMD to Start Production of piledriver  
Ivy Bridge Quad-Core, Four-Thread Desktop CPUs  
Islamists Protest Lady Gaga's Concert in Indonesia  
Japan Successfully Broadcasts an 8K Signal Over the Air  
ECB boosts loans to 1 trillion Euro to stop credit crunch  
Egypt : Mohammed Morsi won with 52 percent  
What do you call 100,000 Frenchmen with their hands up  
AMD Launches AMD Embedded R-Series APU Platform  
Fed Should not Ignore Emerging Market Crisis  
Fed casts shadow over India, emerging markets  
Why are Chinese tourists so rude? A few insights