Afghan ministers sacked after confidence vote
August 4th, 2012 - 11:01 pm ICT by IANSLondon, Aug 4 (IANS) The Afghan parliament has passed a vote of no confidence on two of its most senior ministers and demanded that they be replaced after they failed to prevent cross-border shelling from Pakistan, BBC reported Saturday.
Interior Minister Besmillah Mohammadi and Defence Minister Abdul Rahim Wardak were also criticised for security lapses that resulted in the assassination of senior officials.
The ministers have also been questioned by MPs over allegations of corruption.
Observers said the vote is a blow to President Hamid Karzai’s administration.
Karzai’s office said he would make a decision Sunday about the future of the ministers.
The president has the power to keep them in their posts for another month. In the past, Karzai has retained his ministers for even longer.
Speaking ahead of the vote, Wardak said he had responded to cross-border attacks by sending more troops to the border, and had deployed long-range artillery.
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Tags: allegations, bbc, confidence vote, corruption, cross border, defence minister, hamid karzai, interior minister, london, mohammadi, mps, observers, pakistan, parliament, president hamid karzai, range artillery, security lapses, senior officials, vote of no confidence, wardak