FACTBOX: Some facts about Afghan militia chief Dostum

KABUL (Reuters) - After months of exile in Turkey, Uzbek General Abdul Rashid Dostum returned to Afghanistan on Sunday after being given a government all-clear in the face of threats by his supporters to withdraw support for President Hamid Karzai in Thursday's election.

Following are some facts about Dostum:.

* A survivor of Afghanistan's 30 years of war and known for making and breaking alliances, Dostum is the self-styled leader of the Uzbek minority in a country where ethnic loyalty has become a key force.

* Originally a plumber, Dostum joined the army and became a general under the communist regime in late 1970s. He has influence in several northern provinces where hundreds of thousands of Uzbeks live.

* During its occupation of Afghanistan in the 1980s, the Soviet Union promoted the burly Dostum as the leader of Uzbek militia forces fighting against the Western-backed Mujahideen groups. He was named a national hero by the Moscow-backed government, but also earned reputation for brutality.

* A pro-federalist, Dostum who resembles to Josef Stalin, has had close ties with Uzbekistan and Turkey for years.

* He sided with U.S. forces in driving out the Taliban from parts of northern Afghanistan in 2001. Some 2,000 Taliban fighters who surrendered to Dostum suffocated to death in cargo containers in which they were being held in what became known as the Dasht-i-Laili massacre.

Another 300 Taliban prisoners held by Dostum and U.S. forces in a 19th century prison fortress died during a rebellion.

* Dostum stood for the presidency in the 2004 election and won 10 percent of the vote. He held a ceremonial position as the chief of staff for the commander-in-chief until last year when, following clashes with a rival, he was put under house arrest by the government and then forced into exile.

* Dostum's party and loyalists have pledged to support incumbent Hamid Karzai in return for positions in a future government.