Abdul Salaam - Afghan warlord who fought against coalition now a governor

Nick Meo reports on the Times (UK, January 9, 2008, Taleban warlord gets new job as governor):

A feared Taleban commander who fought against British troops until he changed sides has been named governor of the key town of Musa Qala.

The appointment of Abdul Salaam to the crucial job was hailed last night by the Afghan Government, which is redoubling British-supported efforts to persuade Taleban commanders to end their armed struggle.

Officials hope that persuading Mullah Salaam, formerly one of their most ferocious enemies, to “reconcile” will encourage other Taleban commanders to change sides....

...the appointment will be opposed bitterly by many anti-Taleban Afghans who fear that the reconciliation process will allow fundamentalists to return to power, at least at local level. It will also put British soldiers in the unusual position of working closely with a man who was pledged to kill them a few weeks ago.

During the ten months when the Taleban ran Musa Qala, a key opium bazaar town in the north of Helmand, Afghans accused of being British spies were hanged in public, and suspected government collaborators were tortured. Heroin was traded openly in the town, and an estimated half a billion dollars of drugs were stockpiled there. Mullah Salaam was an important leader in the town during that time....

...Yesterday the new governor said that the Taleban had been divided for a while in Musa Qala but the majority were behind him.

“There are two groups of Taleban fighters in Musa Qala and I have the backing of the major one. The Taleban who are against peace and prosperity in Afghanistan, I will fight them,” he said.

The appointment comes soon after two senior international officials from the UN and EU were ordered to leave the country by President Karzai, who accused them of trying to negotiate with Taleban commanders in Musa Qala....