Afghan Minister assassinated, say officials

Afghan government officials say the Civil Aviation Minister who was beaten to death at Kabul airport was assassinated. It initially appeared that Abdul Rahman was attacked by Muslim pilgrims whose flights had been delayed for two days.

Passengers had grown increasingly frustrated and angry after waiting for days to board a flight to Mecca. Some had used up their life savings to finance the pilgrimage.

Inside the airport, two women reportedly froze to death as temperatures tumbled. Tempers flared after rumours spread that Adbul Rahman, the country's Civil Aviation and Tourism Minister, was taking their plane to fly his family to New Delhi.

An angry crowd dragged him from the aircraft and beat him to death. International peacekeeping troops had tried to intervene but they were unable to save him.

After the attack, two planes chartered by the Afghan government finally took off with most of the pilgrims on board. But thousands more remain stranded across the country.

The interim Afghan leader, Hamid Karzai, told a news conference tonight that three people had been detained, all of them from the country's security apparatus. The Information Minister said other senior officials were also implicated.

Meanwhile there were ugly scenes in Kabul's football stadium as a match between peacekeeping troops and the national team was about to kick off. The trouble broke out as fans tried to force their way in.

Scuffles broke out between supporters and police who tried to contain the stampede. The game eventually got underway, with the home side losing by three goals to one. For their trouble, the victorious peacekeepers got to lift the Premiership trophy, which is on loan from the English Football Association.