Afghan VP Dostum escapes killing plot

Afghan Vice President Abdul Rashid Dostum narrowly escaped a suicide bomb attack at Kabul airport as he returned home yesterday from more than a year in exile in Turkey over allegations of torturing and abusing a political rival.

Dostum, who left Afghanistan last year after heavy pressure from Western donors including the United States, had exited the airport in a motorcade only minutes before the explosion, which police said killed at least 14 people and wounded more than 50.

He was unharmed in the blast claimed by Islamic State group. A little over a mile from where the attack took place, cheering supporters who had been waiting for hours gave him a red carpet reception at a rally at his office compound.

However, the incident underlined the increasingly volatile and unstable political climate in Kabul ahead of parliamentary elections in October that are seen as a dry run for more important presidential elections early next year.

Dostum's return followed more than two weeks of sometimes violent demonstrations by supporters demanding the release of one of his militia commanders who was arrested following a dispute with officers in the regular security forces.

Once referred to as a "quintessential warlord" by the US State Department, Dostum has long been accused of serious human rights abuses. Shortly after the US-led campaign in 2001, he was accused of killing Taliban prisoners by leaving them locked in airless cargo containers. He has denied the accusations.