Defence minister and interior minister disqualified by parliament

[Digital Malang]

[Admin Khan]

Dm, says who?

[Digital Malang]

Salamoona Admin KHana. I hope u are in the best of health.

someone in the parliament informed me but there is probably updates on it online by now.

[Digital Malang]

* Ministers could stay in roles in acting capacity

* Defence minister says sends reinforcements

* Interior minister says has evidence of Pakistan rockets

By Hamid Shalizi

KABUL, Aug 4 (Reuters) - Afghanistan's parliament voted on Saturday to dismiss both the interior and defence ministers over continued cross-border shelling which the Afghan government has blamed on neighbouring Pakistan's army, as well as other issues.

The fractious parliament voted to remove the pair despite their promises to reinforce the border, although President Hamid Karzai has previously opted to keep ministers in their roles in acting capacity after similar votes.

"Both ministers failed to receive votes of confidence and we ask President (Hamid) Karzai to introduce new ministers," said Abdul Rahoof Ibrahimi, speaker of the house, after a bitter debate that underscores the problems in store for Karzai's administration ahead of 2014 presidential elections.

Afghanistan has rushed additional troops and long-range artillery to the mountainous Pakistan border as tensions continue to rise over cross-border shelling which Afghan officials blame on Pakistan's powerful military.

Afghanistan has for months accused Pakistan's army of firing hundreds of rockets into the two eastern provinces of Kunar and Nuristan, targeting insurgent havens, but also forcing Afghan villagers to flee their homes and angering the parliament.

"The defence ministry has reinforced army corps 201 and 203 and has specially created another division from which two battalions have already been sent there," Afghan Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak told lawmakers before the vote to remove him.

"We have also sent long-range artillery and ammunition for use by all army corps," Wardak said, adding that some artillery was being specially refurbished for the eastern border.

While both sides and NATO-led foreign troops have been holding top-level meetings to improve border security, Afghanistan's foreign ministry summoned Pakistan's Kabul ambassador last week and warned that continued shelling would damage already fragile bilateral ties.

Pakistan's military has rejected the accusation and says it only responds to attacks by militants, including Pakistan Taliban operating from what it says are havens in Afghan territory.

SHELL CASE EVIDENCE

The poorly marked border between the two countries is extremely rugged and remote, running through the foothills of the Hindu Kush and easily crossed in both directions by Taliban fighters and other insurgent groups.

Kabul has regularly accused elements in Islamabad's government and army of backing militants fighting the Western-backed Kabul government, while Pakistan accuses Afghanistan of not doing enough to eliminate militant bases.

Interior Minister Bismillah Mohammadi was also summoned with Wardak to explain why the shelling was continuing and to defend the government's response, which lawmakers say has not been strong enough.

Mohammadi showed several pictures of exploded 155mm rocket casings to MPs and told them they should have "no doubt in your minds" that they were fired by Pakistani soldiers.

"It's impossible to say that Taliban are involved because these rockets are only in possession of the Pakistan army," Mohammadi said.

Earlier this week, Afghanistan's spy chief Rahmatullah Nabil said the Pakistani military had fired over 2,100 rockets in the last four months into several districts, with most landing in Kunar and some in less populated Nuristan.

Foreign troops are now transitioning security responsibility to the 350,000-strong Afghan security forces as NATO-led forces look to withdraw from the unpopular war by the end 2014.

http://in.reuters.com/article/2012/08/04/afghanistan-pakistan-rockets-idINL4E8J402L20120804

[Haris]

Wardak was hardly the most capable defence minister Afghanistan has ever had (despite proud US claims to the contrary).
His removal is long overdue.

I wonder who will be replacing him?

[abassinafghan]

what do you expect ???

did you forget ,what our kharzai said the last times those things happend in the past ?

" we dont want war with our neighbours to no degreee regardless what happens ... ."
"if there is a war between pakistan and the u.s , he will side with the pakis and assists . "

now instead knowing that he can not do anything , he could atleast speak as a statesmen and give a good answer like :

"if this those incidents continue and there is evidence that they are sanctioned by a neighboured state , we will take all available measurements to protect the security of our citizen ."

now as you see our country has a lack of leadership and statesmen .

i dont want to know what the one eyed mullah will say to this ....

maybe the rockets are his "ace " in the sleeve , that he is the only one who can keep the people safe , because pakis are "scared " of him .

or more obvious that the pakis will only accept him as the ruler of afg , and stop rocketing than ...

[randolph85]

this is good news.

[Friend]

Wardak was hardly the most capable defence minister Afghanistan has ever had (despite proud US claims to the contrary).
His removal is long overdue.

I wonder who will be replacing him?

Well, this seems to be an emotional decision made by the parliament to calm down the sentiments of public. But what solution do they have ? Can they stop such incidents in the future I mean the new minister will be able to stop such ?

[Haris]

I doubt it. I think he will likely be someone who is just as corrupt as Wardak. I also believe that Wardak will still probably have some sort of role in the government.

Politics is ugly. The parliamentarians as well as the ministers. They all seek their own self interests. It was just the other day that over a million dollars was found in the Finance minister's personal accounts. You are right, this decision is only meant to appease. To hold a public figure accountable but its just an excuse. There will be little change in real governance. It really would surprise me if this government chose to show some backbone and find a meaningful solution to the situatoin.

[Admin Khan]

Wardak was hardly the most capable defence minister Afghanistan has ever had (despite proud US claims to the contrary).
His removal is long overdue.

I wonder who will be replacing him?

Perhaps General Karimi?

[Haris]

So after the expected drama (Karzai trying to keep him in an active role, parliament dismissing that declaring it illegal etc) he has finally resigned.


My friend tells me that this benefits the farsiwaan hawks in Kabul the most as any confrontation with Pakistan would be to the direct detriment of the Pashtuns. If Wardak is replaced with a partisan & ideological non-Pashtun then the repurcussions could be severe.



Afghan Defense Minister Quits, Hands
Karzai a Security Headache


KABUL (Reuters) - Afghan Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak resigned on Tuesday
after losing a no-confidence vote in parliament, leaving President Hamid Karzai
scrambling to find a replacement for one of his top security tsars as insurgent attacks
mount.

Wardak, in charge of the army and one of the country's two key security ministers,
told reporters he accepted parliament's decision, which has clouded NATO plans to
hand security responsibilities to Afghan forces before the end of 2014.

"I respected the parliament's decision to twice appoint me as defence minister, and
now I accept the parliament decision to remove me. I resign my position," Wardak told
journalists.

Karzai's increasingly unpopular government was already under a cloud, with Finance
Minister Hazarat Omar Zakhilwal vulnerable as a result of accusations aired on Afghan
television that he stashed more than $1 million in overseas banks.

The fractious parliament voted on Saturday to remove Wardak and Interior Minister
Bismillah Mohammadi after recent insurgent assassinations of senior officials, as well as
cross-border attacks blamed on Pakistan.

While Karzai opted to keep him in place in an acting role to underpin stability, Wardak's
decision to quit immediately leaves one of his most vital Cabinet posts vacant at the
peak of the summer fighting months and as U.S. and French troops draw down.

It was not immediately clear how soon Karzai would be able to replace the veteran
four-star general and ethnic Pashtun from eastern Wardak province, who is credited
by Western diplomats with helping forge the fledgling Afghan National Army into an
increasingly effective force against insurgents.

Karzai faced constraints in finding a replacement who could maintain ethnic harmony in
his inner circle, while also needing to win over lawmakers whose backing he needs to
deliver a corruption crackdown promised to Western donors.

"Karzai's next moves will be watched very closely by many sides, in particular in the
context of his recent announcements of a long list of new ‘reform' and anti-corruption
measures," said Fabrizio Foschini of the respected Afghan Analysts Network.

"Karzai will have to operate carefully. There are already grumblings about the
provisional solution of keeping the two ‘impeached' officials as acting ministers, even
though this may be mainly motivated by the need to avoid troubles in the security
organs at a critical stage of transition," he said in a blog posting.

FINANCE MINISTER STANDS HIS GROUND

Finance Minister Zakhilwal held a near-simultaneous press conference to Wardak's,
promising to send a list of his assets to the attorney general to look into claims
against him.

But he declined to pass the dossier to the country's top anti-corruption watchdog,
who has asked Karzai to have him stood down pending completion of an investigation.

"For me today the most important issue is the confidence of the people," said
Zakhilwal.

Zakhilwal, in an interview with Tolo TV on Wednesday, denied any wrongdoing and
said there was nothing untoward in the transfers, which were the result of legitimate
work and business interests before entering government.

On Tuesday he accused both Tolo and Afghanistan's High Office of Oversight and
Anti-corruption chief, Dr. Azizullah Ludin, of conspiring against him.

"The head of the oversight department discussed information in public which was
unethical, not based on fact," he said. "It's obviously based on personal differences he
has had with me from time to time."

Violence in Afghanistan is at its fiercest since U.S.-led Afghan troops overthrew the
Taliban government in 2001. Militants have extended their reach from traditional
strongholds in southern and eastern areas to parts of the country once considered
relatively safe.

Just hours before Wardak quit, an insurgent detonated a remote-control bomb under a
mini-bus on Kabul's outskirts, killing nine civilians, while a truck bomb exploded outside
a NATO base east of the city, wounding 15 people, including three U.S. soldiers.

A foreign soldier was killed in the south by an improvised bomb, while another died in
the volatile east, the NATO-led coalition said.


http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2012/..._r=2&ref=world




I think it was stupid to dismiss Wardak without having decided on a replacement in advance. Such impulsive decisions do not help anyone. I think Karimi, an ethnic Pashtun would be the obvious choice in the interests of stability though it will be interesting how this turns out.

[randolph85]

judging by karzais public statement of respecting the parliament, he is probably not too concerned about non pashtuns filling the void.

[Haris]

And yet another twist in this poorly written drama.



Karzai Appoints Former Defense Minister
as Senior Military Advisor



President Hamid Karzai appointed the former Defense Minister Abdul Rahim
Wardak as his senior military advisor said in a presidential statement released
on Monday.

Wardak will focus on reform, development and training of Afghan National Security
Forces, according to the statement.

Last week, Wardak was dismissed from his Defense Minister post after weak
responses, according to lawmakers, to Pakistan's cross-border rocket attacks into
Afghanistan. He was then ordered by President Karzai to retain his position until a
nominee was suggested to Parliament.

Wardak, however, resigned from his position of nine years mission at the Ministry of
Defense.

ISAF said in a press conference that Wardak's dismissal was a step back as he is one
of its closest allies, but his dismissal would not have a negative impacts on the
security transition.


http://www.tolonews.com/en/afghanist...litary-advisor

[ComradePashtun]

This is no drama. It is real and the parliament really got rid of them. Wardak was a useless bag of sh!t and a merely a nominal figure in the ministry of defense. On the other hand Bismillah Khan was Panjsheri/NA-cetnric who had turned to systematically curb particularly Pashtuns in the MoI and make it an NA controlled institution. His remaining in the that ministry would not have bode well and would have gave rise to a precarious factionalism undermining everything from within.

The parliament for once took admirable decision, while our president has cowardly kept him in acting capacity to please NA. Good riddance.