Government confirms troop deployment following deadly violence in Herat

The Afghan government has deployed a substantial number of troops to the troubled western province of Herat following Sunday's violence that claimed the life of Aviation and Tourism Minister Mirwais Sadiq, among others. "The government has sent 1,500 soldiers from the Afghan National Army to prevent further violence in Herat, boost security and underscore Kabul's authority," Javid Ludin, a spokesman for President Hamid Karzai, told IRIN on Tuesday in the capital. Initial reports said up to 100 people had been killed in Herat city after fierce factional fighting erupted following the assassination of Sadiq, son of Herat's governor, Ismail Khan. Troops loyal to Khan fought running gun battles with soldiers backing rival commander General Abdul Zahir shortly after Sadiq was killed, apparently by a rocket-propelled grenade. Sources in the city told IRIN that the death toll was much lower and that fewer than 10 bodies had been recovered following he street fighting. This was confirmed by Ludin. "Much less than a hundred people were killed." Officials said Khan, one of the country's most powerful men who has controlled large parts of western Afghanistan since the Taliban fell in late 2001, was also targeted by a failed assassination attempt earlier in the day. On Monday, the top United Nations envoy in Afghanistan appealed to all parties to restore law and order in the western city, where Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Representative Jean Arnault noted "with grave concern" that, while fighting had subsided somewhat, the house of Chief Justice Khodad had been burned by protesters.

Herat Governor Ismail Khan is the most powerful man in the region

"No one was hurt in the act, but this attack raises the urgent issue of protecting the life and property of civilian leaders, no matter what their views might be," Arnault said in statement issued by his spokesman. He called upon all parties involved in the confrontation "to exercise restraint, to protect the lives of civilians, to do all in their power to reduce tensions in the city and to allow the restoration of law and order". Sadiq was the second aviation minister and the third senior government minister to be killed since the fall of the Taliban. In February 2002 Aviation Minister Abdul Rahman was killed at Kabul airport, apparently by pilgrims angry they were unable to take flights to Mecca. Vice-President Haji Abdul Qadir was shot dead by unknown attackers in mid-2002. In a statement, Karzai said he was "deeply shocked" by the killing of his minister, who was appointed in 2002. "The president mourns this tragic loss and offers his deepest condolences to the father of the deceased, Mr Ismail Khan, the governor of Herat, and his family," it said. A high-level government delegation is currently in Herat to investigate the incident, Ludin confirmed. "The safety and security of the people of Herat is the government's priority."