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Violent protests grip Afghan city
Supporters of the sacked governor of the Afghan city of Herat, Ismail Khan, have set fire to local UN offices on the second day of unrest there.
Unconfirmed reports say at least seven supporters of the ousted governor were killed on Sunday in clashes with US and Afghan government troops and police.
A governor backed by Afghan President Hamid Karzai has taken office in a ceremony in the western city.
Mr Khan has ruled Herat for decades and has resisted the president's authority.
Hundreds of demonstrators ransacked the UN compound on Sunday, setting fire to parts of the buildings and throwing stones, reports say.
US and government troops helped staff to reach safety and tried to keep back the crowds with tear gas.
The compound houses offices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the UN Assistance Mission.
Witnesses reported bursts of gunfire as smoke from burning cars and other wreckage rose over the centre of Herat.
Two people are said to have been killed in protests overnight.
A doctor at Herat's central hospital said seven protesters' bodies had been brought in on Sunday, according to Reuters.
Portraits smashed
The inauguration ceremony for the man Mr Karzai has appointed as his new governor, Mohammed Khair Khuwa, was punctuated by the sound of gunfire outside, the BBC's Andrew North reports.
US helicopters patrolled the skies overhead, our correspondent says.
Mr Khan declined a low-profile ministerial post offered by the president after his dismissal on Saturday.
News of his sacking brought protesters into the streets, with demonstrators gathering in the city centre during the afternoon to chant "Death to Karzai, death to Americans". Afghan soldiers are said to have fired warning shots.
Eyewitnesses said framed pictures of President Karzai were smashed in the street.
In a separate clash, protesters pelted a US military vehicle with stones and troops also fired warning shots.
Ismail Khan's replacement is being seen as an attempt by Mr Karzai to strengthen his position ahead of the historic October elections.
Hundreds of Afghan government troops were flown to Herat in US aircraft to bolster security ahead of the announcement.
Weakened position
One of the best-known former mujahideen leaders, Mr Khan led an uprising there against Soviet troops in 1979.
After taking over as governor in 2001, he turned it into a kind of personal fiefdom, our correspondent says.
For the past few weeks, rumours had been growing that Mr Karzai was preparing to replace Mr Khan after his forces clashed with the fighters of another local militia commander, Amanullah.
Although Amanullah was placed under house arrest, Mr Khan was widely seen to have been weakened by the fighting in which he lost control of several areas of the province, our correspondent says.
The US welcomed Mr Karzai's decision to sack him, but also warned anyone involved against taking action which might threaten security in the region.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3648624.stm
A governor backed by Afghan President Hamid Karzai has taken office in a ceremony in the western city.
Mr Khan has ruled Herat for decades and has resisted the president's authority.
Hundreds of demonstrators ransacked the UN compound on Sunday, setting fire to parts of the buildings and throwing stones, reports say.
US and government troops helped staff to reach safety and tried to keep back the crowds with tear gas.
The compound houses offices of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees and the UN Assistance Mission.
Witnesses reported bursts of gunfire as smoke from burning cars and other wreckage rose over the centre of Herat.
Two people are said to have been killed in protests overnight.
A doctor at Herat's central hospital said seven protesters' bodies had been brought in on Sunday, according to Reuters.
Portraits smashed
The inauguration ceremony for the man Mr Karzai has appointed as his new governor, Mohammed Khair Khuwa, was punctuated by the sound of gunfire outside, the BBC's Andrew North reports.
US helicopters patrolled the skies overhead, our correspondent says.
Mr Khan declined a low-profile ministerial post offered by the president after his dismissal on Saturday.
News of his sacking brought protesters into the streets, with demonstrators gathering in the city centre during the afternoon to chant "Death to Karzai, death to Americans". Afghan soldiers are said to have fired warning shots.
Eyewitnesses said framed pictures of President Karzai were smashed in the street.
In a separate clash, protesters pelted a US military vehicle with stones and troops also fired warning shots.
Ismail Khan's replacement is being seen as an attempt by Mr Karzai to strengthen his position ahead of the historic October elections.
Hundreds of Afghan government troops were flown to Herat in US aircraft to bolster security ahead of the announcement.
Weakened position
One of the best-known former mujahideen leaders, Mr Khan led an uprising there against Soviet troops in 1979.
After taking over as governor in 2001, he turned it into a kind of personal fiefdom, our correspondent says.
For the past few weeks, rumours had been growing that Mr Karzai was preparing to replace Mr Khan after his forces clashed with the fighters of another local militia commander, Amanullah.
Although Amanullah was placed under house arrest, Mr Khan was widely seen to have been weakened by the fighting in which he lost control of several areas of the province, our correspondent says.
The US welcomed Mr Karzai's decision to sack him, but also warned anyone involved against taking action which might threaten security in the region.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/south_asia/3648624.stm
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HERAT, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Seven supporters of an ousted Afghan governor were killed and 20 were wounded on Sunday in clashes with police and U.S. troops after crowds torched U.N. offices, medics and witnesses said.
The violence occurred as protests erupted for a second day after President Hamid Karzai, campaigning for a presidential poll on Oct. 9, replaced Ismail Khan as governor of the western city of Herat Saturday as part of a plan to rein in warlords.
Bursts of small arms fire could still be heard round the city in the evening, as Afghan and U.S. forces attempted to restore order after hundreds of Khan's supporters burned and looted the U.N. offices and set fire to the Pakistani consulate.
A Reuters reporter saw Khan backers shouting "Death to Karzai" and "Death to America" before setting fire to the offices of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, the U.N. Assistance Mission and the U.N. Development Program.
Protesters threw stones at U.S. soldiers in a Humvee.
"I have so far received seven bodies of protesters," said a doctor at Herat's central hospital, declining to be identified. A Reuters cameraman saw at least 20 people being treated for gunshot wounds at the hospital.
"I was protesting in front of the U.N. office when the Americans shot me in the leg," said Abdul Hamed.
KARZAI WARNS AGAINST VIOLENCE
Karzai told a news conference Afghans had the right to protest peacefully.
"(But) anyone who resorts to violence against the United Nations or NGOs, these are rioters hurting the Afghan people and we will deal with them strongly," he said.
Hospital officials and witnesses said at least two people were killed in clashes with U.S. and Afghan forces Saturday. The U.S. military disputed this, saying two people were hurt.
The violence occurred despite the presence of hundreds of Afghan and U.S. troops in Herat and U.S. military helicopters flying low overhead.
U.N. spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said U.N. staff had been evacuated to the U.S. military compound in the city and there were no reports that any had been hurt.
Karzai replaced the governors of Herat and the restive province of Ghor after launching his election manifesto with a pledge to rein in warlords.
Afghanistan's ambassador to Ukraine, Sayed Mohammad Khairkhwa, arrived in Herat Sunday to replace Khan.
U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, a close Karzai confidant, said he was not aware of any deaths and praised security forces for restraint, even though some had been hurt by stone throwers.
He said he had spoken to Khan, who would appear on television to urge cooperation with the new governor.
"I think it's sent a clear message of where Afghanistan is headed and how you can be a part of the future of Afghanistan," Khalilzad said of Khan's replacement and other changes.
Karzai had offered Khan, long a thorn in his side, the job of minister of mines. But Khan rejected the post, saying he would remain in Herat as a "private citizen."
U.N. Special Representative Jean Arnault said before Sunday's violence that replacing the governors had boosted the chances of a peaceful election on Oct. 9.
In launching his campaign, Karzai said he would not form a coalition government if, as expected, he won the poll.
He recently dropped his vice president, powerful Defense Minister Mohammad Qasim Fahim, as his running mate.
Karzai, named interim president in 2002 after a U.S.-led invasion toppled the Taliban as punishment for protecting Osama bin Laden 's al Qaeda, faces 17 rivals in the Oct. 9 vote.
The violence occurred as protests erupted for a second day after President Hamid Karzai, campaigning for a presidential poll on Oct. 9, replaced Ismail Khan as governor of the western city of Herat Saturday as part of a plan to rein in warlords.
Bursts of small arms fire could still be heard round the city in the evening, as Afghan and U.S. forces attempted to restore order after hundreds of Khan's supporters burned and looted the U.N. offices and set fire to the Pakistani consulate.
A Reuters reporter saw Khan backers shouting "Death to Karzai" and "Death to America" before setting fire to the offices of the U.N. High Commissioner for Refugees, the U.N. Assistance Mission and the U.N. Development Program.
Protesters threw stones at U.S. soldiers in a Humvee.
"I have so far received seven bodies of protesters," said a doctor at Herat's central hospital, declining to be identified. A Reuters cameraman saw at least 20 people being treated for gunshot wounds at the hospital.
"I was protesting in front of the U.N. office when the Americans shot me in the leg," said Abdul Hamed.
KARZAI WARNS AGAINST VIOLENCE
Karzai told a news conference Afghans had the right to protest peacefully.
"(But) anyone who resorts to violence against the United Nations or NGOs, these are rioters hurting the Afghan people and we will deal with them strongly," he said.
Hospital officials and witnesses said at least two people were killed in clashes with U.S. and Afghan forces Saturday. The U.S. military disputed this, saying two people were hurt.
The violence occurred despite the presence of hundreds of Afghan and U.S. troops in Herat and U.S. military helicopters flying low overhead.
U.N. spokesman Manoel de Almeida e Silva said U.N. staff had been evacuated to the U.S. military compound in the city and there were no reports that any had been hurt.
Karzai replaced the governors of Herat and the restive province of Ghor after launching his election manifesto with a pledge to rein in warlords.
Afghanistan's ambassador to Ukraine, Sayed Mohammad Khairkhwa, arrived in Herat Sunday to replace Khan.
U.S. ambassador Zalmay Khalilzad, a close Karzai confidant, said he was not aware of any deaths and praised security forces for restraint, even though some had been hurt by stone throwers.
He said he had spoken to Khan, who would appear on television to urge cooperation with the new governor.
"I think it's sent a clear message of where Afghanistan is headed and how you can be a part of the future of Afghanistan," Khalilzad said of Khan's replacement and other changes.
Karzai had offered Khan, long a thorn in his side, the job of minister of mines. But Khan rejected the post, saying he would remain in Herat as a "private citizen."
U.N. Special Representative Jean Arnault said before Sunday's violence that replacing the governors had boosted the chances of a peaceful election on Oct. 9.
In launching his campaign, Karzai said he would not form a coalition government if, as expected, he won the poll.
He recently dropped his vice president, powerful Defense Minister Mohammad Qasim Fahim, as his running mate.
Karzai, named interim president in 2002 after a U.S.-led invasion toppled the Taliban as punishment for protecting Osama bin Laden 's al Qaeda, faces 17 rivals in the Oct. 9 vote.
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