Warlord clash

last updated 8 January 2015

Herat, Afghanistan

Afghan government troops this week battled forces loyal to the powerful warlord Ismail Khan, who commands a private army in Herat. The fighting began at a book reading, escalating when a gunfight sparked street battles and Khan’s son, Aviation Minister Mirwais Sadiq, was killed. A subsequent clash between Khan’s militia and government troops stationed in the area left around 100 people dead, and President Hamid Karzai sent 1,500 U.S.-trained reinforcements to the region. Khan, the governor of Herat, pledged last year to disband his illegal militia and cooperate with the central government, but he has not done so.