Notes on General Mohammed Fahim

General Mohammed Fahim and Donald Rumsfeld

General Mohammed Fahim is an ethnic Tajik succeeded Ahmed Shah Mahsood as the Military Commander of the United Front. He is seen as being personnally loyal to President Rabbani.
Two Arabs Arrested in Afghan Assassination Bid
- Fri November 22, 2002 05:05 PM ET
  By Sayed Salahuddin
- KABUL, Afghanistan (Reuters) - Afghan authorities averted an attempt to assassinate the defense minister Friday, arresting two people who were carrying explosives and apparently planning a suicide bombing, a spokesman said.
  Two men carrying bombs were arrested on a street frequently used by Defense Minister Mohammad Qasim Fahim, Mir Jan, deputy head of foreign relations of the Defense Ministry, told Reuters.
  "Before committing the action, security forces foiled their plan. Both of them are Arabs," Jan said. "Fahim is fine, actually the incident was aborted before he passed through the street."
  Jan did not give more details about the incident which happened in the upmarket Wazir Akbar Khan area, home to many diplomatic missions.
  The bombers had apparently planned to kill Fahim as he left a mosque after attending Friday prayers at Wazir Akbar Khan's main mosque, Dr. Gulbuddin, an aide of Fahim, told reporters.
  A statement from the Afghan intelligence's security department later said only one person had been arrested in connection with the incident.
  "A resident of Kurdistan in Iraq, Bohtan Akram Tawfiq Horami, was arrested near Fahim's house by security officials. He had skillfully placed 10 kilos (22 pounds) of C4 explosive material in his waistcoat," state media quoted the statement as saying. C4 is a powerful plastic explosive.
  The reported statement said the attacker wanted to kill either President Hamid Karzai or Fahim.
  Fahim and his Northern Alliance faction forms the backbone of Karzai's government, set up after the United States toppled the Taliban regime last year.
  Fahim, 45, who is also a vice president, survived an earlier attempt on his life in the eastern city of Jalalabad during a spring visit.
  Vice President Hajji Abdul Qadir was shot dead outside his office in central Kabul in July.
  In early September, Karzai narrowly survived an assassination attempt when a gunman opened fire on his vehicle in the southern city of Kandahar. The local governor was in the same car and was wounded in the neck.