Kabul, Mar 21: Afghanistan's Civil Aviation Minister Mirwais Sadiq, the son of the powerful governor of Herat province, was killed in an ambush in the provincial capital on Sunday, a local government official said.
Fighting erupted in the western city of Herat immediately after the assassination, which a spokesman for Governor Ismail Khan blamed on forces loyal to a senior government commander in the province, Zahir Nayebzada.

"Unfortunately, he (Sadiq) has been killed," said Ghulam Mohammad Masoan. "He was in his car along with two police officers who were killed with him."

He blamed the killing on 'a personal rivalry'.

"Fighting is going on near the house of the commander," he said. "I cannot give you more details because I am in the area."

Sadiq was the third member of President Hamid Karzai's cabinet to be assassinated, and the second civil aviation minister to die since Karzai's Government came to power in place of the Taliban in late 2001.
In February 2002, Sadiq's predecessor Abdul Rahman was assassinated at Kabul airport. Vice President and Public Works Minister Haji Abdul Qadir was shot dead at his office in July of that year.

In February 2003, Minister for Petroleum and Mines Juma Mohammad Mohammadi died in an air crash off Pakistan. Bureau Report