New Governor Named for Strife-Torn Province

The interim government Monday appointed a new governor of Paktia province, setting up a possible new showdown with the previous governor, who had fought a bloody battle with a rival warlord.

In announcing Taj Mohamad Wardak as the governor of Paktia, in eastern Afghanistan, Gen. Deen Mohammad Joorat, chief of the national security department, blamed neighboring Pakistan for the unrest that has swept Paktia.

Joorat said Wardak, who replaces former Gov. Bacha Khan, was an influential figure who could rule the province peacefully.

Wardak served as governor of the northeastern province of Badakhshan in the 1970s and is seen as a supporter of Afghanistan’s former king, Mohammad Zaher Shah, who was ousted in 1973.

The appointment was made a day after Khan said he would oppose any move by interim Prime Minister Hamid Karzai to replace him.

Khan vowed to recapture the provincial capital, Gardez, 60 miles south of Kabul, the Afghan capital. He was forced out of the city by fighters loyal to rival commander Haji Saifullah after two days of clashes late last month.

The violence highlighted problems Karzai faces in uniting the country and imposing stability as old tribal and ethnic rivalries emerge after the defeat of the Taliban regime.

The fighting in Gardez broke out when Khan tried to disarm loyalists of Saifullah, who claims to have been chosen as governor by the town’s tribal council. More than 50 people were killed in the clashes.

Karzai accused Khan of starting the fighting with heavy-handed tactics, but Khan warned that there would be more trouble unless he was returned to power.

“Fighting will erupt if they [Saifullah’s forces] do not evacuate the area. . . . We are ready to take it any time,” Khan said. “If Karzai takes the decision of appointing another governor, then he will confront problems in other provinces.”

In Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates on Monday, Karzai called for more international peacekeepers to protect his government from challenges from tribal leaders.

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Beginning in stories published in 2006, the Afghan warlord Bacha Khan is identified as Pacha Khan Zadran. (Second reference is “Pacha Khan.”)

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