Karzai: Afghan Official Killed in Planned Attack
Feb. 15 -- Afghanistan's interim leader Hamid Karzai today said the killing of the country's civil aviation and tourism minister at the Kabul airport was a planned attack by officials within his administration.
Initial reports said Abdul Rehman was killed when a crowd of pilgrims, enraged by flight delays, attacked him as he attempted to board a flight to India.
But at a hastily convened news conference in Kabul today, Karzai dismissed reports that Rehman was killed by a crowd of people awaiting a flight to Mecca, Saudi Arabia, to make the hajj, or religious pilgrimage. Rehman's killing had "nothing to do with hajjis," Karzai said.
According to Afghanistan's interim leader, Rehman was killed by senior security officials from his administration for "personal reasons."
Despite repeated questions by reporters about what those reasons might be, Karzai refused to provide any details.
A list of five suspects in the alleged murder included the head of Afghanistan's intelligence services, Gen. Abdullah Jan Tawhidi, and Gen. KalandarBeg, a deputy in the defense ministry.
According to Afghanistan's interim information minister Abdul Rahim Makhdoom, three of the suspects had left for Saudi Arabia.
A senior Bush administration officials told PBS' The Newshour withJim Lehrer that Saudi Arabia has agreed to turn over the suspects.
An Unfriendly Game
Earlier today, a goodwill soccer match, billed the "game of unity," turned into a brawl between soccer fans and the local police attempting to control the crowds at the Kabul stadium today.
Several thousand fans, many of them without tickets for the match, were beaten back by the police as they tried to make their way into the stadium to watch a game between the local team and a team representing the ISAF (International Security Assistance Force).
German troops from the ISAF tried to contain the crowd from surging into the stadium, but were unable to maintain order.
Although the kickoff was delayed by 30 minutes, the game began despite the clash. The ISAF team won the game 3-1.
