Admin. put off probe of Afghan killings

WASHINGTON, July 10 (UPI) -- Bush administration officials discouraged an investigation into a mass killing in Afghanistan, government officials and human rights workers say.

Hundreds, and perhaps thousands, of Taliban prisoners of war were killed by forces under Gen. Abdul Rashid Dostum, a warlord who was backed by the United States during the 2001 invasion of Afghanistan. An investigation into the killings was requested by the FBI, the State Department, the Red Cross and by human rights groups.

They told The New York Times the Bush administration would not investigate because Dostum was on the CIA payroll. The general also served in the government of President Hamid Karzai, who was supported by the United States.

The Obama administration has not addressed the issue yet, but State Department officials are working to keep Dostum from staying on as military chief of staff to the Afghan president, senior officials told the Times.

Dostum was reappointed to the post after a suspension for allegedly threatening a political rival. He is considered an important ally of Karzai, the Times said.