Afghan official: Arrest warrants issued for VP’s guards

KABUL – Afghanistan’s attorney general is ordering the arrest of nine employees of Vice-President Rashid Dostum in connection with allegations of kidnapping and torturing a former ally.

Dostum, a powerful warlord, has denied the allegations. But spokesman for the attorney general, Jamshid Rasouli, said Tuesday that arrests were ordered after the employees failed to present themselves for questioning. The majority of the nine employees are Dostum’s personal guards.

Dostum has been accused of war crimes committed after the collapse of the Taliban in 2001, yet he rose to the powerful position of vice-president — highlighting a common complaint in Afghanistan about the many former warlords who now hold positions of power.

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