Qalat, but was later planned to be rebuilt when the opportunity came. The following day, Mihrdil Khan, who had already withdrew his troops out of the citadel at Kohandil Khan's orders the day before, abandoned it and the citadel was demolished. The two half-brothers bade each other farewell and returned to their center's of rule in Kabul and Kandahar. This reconciliation and peace left Qalat as neutral territory. Uprising in Turkistan and Conquest of Sheberghan (1852-1854) The winter campaign against Qataghan, however, came with a great price. Akram Khan, who was already suffering from Tuberculosis, caught Pneumonia during the course of the campaign. This then developed to Pleurisy, from which he would never recover from. He died in 1852. Following his unexpected death, his twelve-year old son took control as temporary governor of Balkh. Dost Mohammad Khan then appointed Mohammad Afzal Khan, his eldest son as the successor of Akram Khan in the northern provinces. This appointment was not well received with Dost Mohammad's other sons, who continued to intrigue and plot against each other much to the annoyance of Dost Mohammad. Afzal Khan's first months as governor passed without any disturbances, though a number of chiefs from Balkh continued seeking for outside help against the Afghans. A number of Aimaq Amirs made a secret journey to Tehran, soliciting the help of Persia. In the east, Qataghan continued to be disturbed and the Mir Ataliq opened contact with the Bukharan rebellious province of Shahr-I Sabz, with the aim of seizing Afghan-held areas near the Amu Darya. During this, another one of Dost Mohammad's sons, Muhammad Zaman Khan, alongside the governor of Khulm, plundered some Kochi nomads. The first major challenge to Afzal Khan's paramountcy however, was from Mahmud Khan, the former Beglarbegi of Sar-I-Pul. In the summer of 1852, following disturbances in Mazar-I-Sharif, in which the sons of Shuja'al-Din seemed to have played a part in, Afzal Khan marched his forces into the holy city and forced the dead Shaikh's sons to accept Afghan overlordship, possibly even garrisoning the city-state. However the Afghan presence of troops was the catalyst for a further conflict, growing resentment against Afghan rule in Turkistan. Mahmud Khan, released sometime in 1851, and given over the governorship of Aqcha, hearing of Afzal Khan's actions at Mazar-I-Sharif, immediately began a rebellion. Afzal Khan acted quickly, sending over five hundred sowars against Aqcha, where Afzal Khan was joined