Plane carrying Dostum barred from landing in Balkh

KABUL on Tuesday confirmed a chartered plane carrying Vice-President Abdul Rashid Dostum was denied permission to land in northern Balkh province.

RS spokesman US Navy Captain Bill Salvin told an American radio that they were called and their support in preventing the plane from landing at the airport in Mazar-i-Sharif was sought.

He denied NATO troops under German command in Balkh had any role in turning away the plane that carried Dostum.

He confirmed Dostum was on the plane, but he did not say who barred the plane from landing and who sought NATO support in preventing the jet from landing.

Some reports said Dostum, who has been Turkey on medical leave, flew to Afghanistan in a private plane but the plane was not allowed to land in Balkh and the jet diverted its course to neighboring Turkmenistan.

The VP office rejected the reports as untrue, saying Junbish-Islami leader was due to return home next week to attend a gathering marking the announcement of the three-party coalition.

Without going into details, a member of the Junbish party, Senator Maulvi Abdullah Qarlaq told reporters that some countries and circles were pressuring Dostum to stay in Turkey.

He said preventing Dostum from coming to Afghanistan was aimed at preventing the three-party alliance.

The development signals deepening political tension in Afghanistan amid increasing insecurity. The plane carrying Dostum was reportedly told to divert its course to Kabul, where he is facing a court case over allegations he beat up and tortured a political rival.

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