Afghan President Hamid Karzai has fired his attorney general, Muhammad Ishaq Aloko, after learning the top law enforcement officer had been engaging in behind-doors talks with the Taliban in Dubai, against presidential orders.
Mr. Aloko took part in the private meeting in August, an anonymous source said, as CBS reported. Mr. Karzai had specifically ordered him to stay away. Mr. Aloko’s spokesman refused to comment — and even suggested the report of the firing was false, saying the attorney general was actually attending ceremonies at the presidential palace on Monday to mark the nation’s 94th Independence Day, CBS reported.
The flap comes just a few weeks after Mr. Karzai shuttered peace talks with the United States over another fiasco with the Taliban. That one, in mid-July, involved the militant group’s opening of a political office in Qatar, a move seen by Mr. Karzai as a usurpation of his authority and a political message of the Taliban’s growing might. Mr. Karzai canceled the talks and boycotted the peace process as a result.
The talks were supposed to solidify the post-2014 security arrangement with the United States in Afghanistan after American troops withdraw.
• Cheryl K. Chumley can be reached at cchumley@washingtontimes.com.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.