KABUL, Afghanistan — President Hamid Karzai forced two of his three top security officials to resign Sunday over their failure to prevent attacks on last week’s peace council in the capital, Afghan and American officials said, sparking shock and concern among Western officials about such drastic changes in crucial ministries even as the American war effort here reaches a critical phase.
After a two-and-a-half hour conversation with Mr. Karzai on Sunday afternoon, Amrullah Saleh, the head of Afghanistan’s intelligence agency, known as the National Directorate of Security, and Hanif Atmar, the Interior minister, submitted their resignations.
The announcement took the NATO leadership and diplomats by surprise. “We had a very good working relationship with both, a relationship developed over a long time,” said a NATO official close to Gen. Stanley A. McChrystal, the senior military commander in Afghanistan.
“It’s really not helpful to what we’re trying to do right now,” added the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
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