Karzai returns to Afghanistan

Saturday February 2, 3:28 PM AFP

Afghan interim leader Hamid Karzai has returned to Afghanistan after a week-long trip abroad that took him to the United States and Britain.

Snow at Kabul International Airport forced Karzai's plane to land at Bagram, the former Soviet air base some 50 kilometers (30 miles) north of the capital, "sometime during the night," airport manager Gul Hajam said Saturday.

During Karzai's absence, bloody fighting erupted at Gardez, capital of eastern Paktia province when his appointee as governor, Padsha Khan, tried to take up his post through force after rival warlord Saif Ullah refused to hand over power.

Some 50 people, including about 20 civilians, were killed in the fierce exchange of mortars, rockets and machinegun fire between the two forces.

Khan's troops were forced into a humiliating retreat after two days of clashes, which ended late Thursday.

The fighting underscored Karzai's appeals for more international troops to stabilise his devastated country as it tries to recover from 23 years of war.

After talks with US President George W. Bush, Karzai asked the UN Security Council to send more troops to Afghanistan and to extend their mandate beyond six months.

He repeated his appeal for a wider role for the multinational peacekeeping force during talks in London with Prime Minister Tony Blair.

While assuring Karzai there would be a "long-term" international commitment, Blair said Britain's military involvement had limits.

Britain currently leads the so far 2,500-strong multinational force, which is due to number 4,500 by the end of the month.