In a major shake up in the presidential palace in Kabul, President Hamid Karzai has removed Jawed Ludin, his British educated chief of staff, and replaced him with his predecessor in the job, Daily Telegraph reported on Thursday. Mystery surroundÂ’s the sudden resignation of Ludin who first served Karzai as press spokesman and then as chief of staff after graduating from a British university. However senior Afghan officials said the cause of the shake up was due to political infighting within KarzaiÂ’s staff. The move has shaken Western diplomats in Kabul and is seen a sign that Karzai is struggling to control the loyalty of his government. It has led to a flood of rumours amongst Afghan cabinet ministers about a possible conspiracy against Karzai, just as Afghan and NATO forces brace themselves for a major Taliban offensive in the next few weeks, the newspaper reported.
In recent months Karzai has faced harsh criticism from many Afghans including members of his staff, senior Western diplomats and NATO officials for not being more decisive in curbing corruption and drugs trafficking in order to win back popular support, while NATO and Afghan forces battle the Taliban. Much of the blame for KarzaiÂ’s poor performance has been blamed by Afghans on his staff and cabinet ministers and Ludin appears to have become a victim of the blame game, according to palace sources. On Thursday Ludin spent his last day in office and he will be replaced by Omar Daudzai, who served as chief of staff to Karzai two years ago. Afghan officials said Ludin would be offered an ambassadorship in Europe.