Afghan Militia Leaders Shifted from Army Positions to Civilian Roles
VOA News
20 Jul 2004, 13:53 UTC
Afghanistan's President Hamid Karzai has shifted three powerful militia leaders from army to civilian positions in what is being seen as an attempt to ensure the country's October presidential election is safe and fair.
Army General Atta Mohammed will now become governor of northern Balkh province. General Hazrat Ali will become the police chief of eastern Nangarhar province, and General Khan Mohammed police chief of southern Kandahar province.
Mr. Karzai says warlords are more of a threat than Taleban fighters, who have vowed to disrupt the upcoming elections. In the recent past, General Mohammed's mainly Tajik militia has often clashed with a rival commander's ethnic Uzbek forces.
Most of Afghanistan's roughly 50,000 militia fighters have not given up their weapons despite a United Nations program to disarm them.
Some information for this report provided by AP, AFP and Reuters.
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