Troops Try to Kill Defense Minister of Afghanistan

Afghan soldiers failed in an attempt to assassinate the defense minister at the Kabul airport Saturday, while fighting in southern Afghanistan left 30 suspected militants dead, officials said.

The violence came as U.S. military commanders warned that Taliban insurgents might use car bombs and suicide attacks to try to disrupt parliamentary elections set for Sept. 18. But Maj. Gen. Jason Kamiya, the top operational commander in Afghanistan, said he was confident that enough American troops and other forces were in place to ensure the balloting succeeded.

Meanwhile, a helicopter carrying the Afghan army chief and three Cabinet ministers crashed during takeoff, but all escaped with minor injuries. The government called it an accident.

Nine Afghan soldiers were arrested in the attempt to shoot Defense Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak, said ministry spokesman Gen. Mohammed Zahir Azimi. Four bullets hit his convoy as it left the airport, but Wardak and several other ministers had left, Azimi said.

A senior government official, speaking on condition of anonymity, said the soldiers were angry over a pay dispute.

The attempt comes in the run-up to the election, the next key step toward democracy after last fall’s presidential vote.

Insurgents loyal to the ousted Taliban have stepped up activities and coalition forces have gone on the offensive in recent weeks, reporting the killings or arrests of hundreds of suspected rebels. Azimi said Afghan and U.S.-led forces killed 30 suspected militants Friday in the southern province of Helmand.