Who's the boss?
Hamid Karzai and his unbiddable warlords
AFGHANS have a new pastime. They are debating whether their president is finally cutting the country's warlords down to size, or whether he is just electioneering. This week, by dropping Mohammed Fahim, the powerful defence minister, as one of his vice-presidential running mates for the October 9th presidential election, Mr Karzai seems to have sidelined one of the biggest challengers to his authority. There are many more to deal with.
This article appeared in the Asia section of the print edition under the headline “Who's the boss?”
From the July 31st 2004 edition
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