Afghanistans front-runner condemns Karzais anti-NATO tirades A front-runner in Afghanistans elections has criticized President Hamid Karzai for his incendiary claim that NATO forces were to blame for worsening violence in the country. In an interview with The Daily Telegraph, presidential candidate Abdullah Abdullah said the sacrifices made by international forces in fighting extremism must not be forgotten. His words stand in contrast to Karzai, who has repeatedly accused NATO of causing loss of life. Abdullah, who was runner-up in the 2009 elections, said: Unfortunately President Karzai has opted for the line that at any stage somebody else is to be blamed. At one time it was mujahedeen, its warlords and so on. Now it has become the international community or the neighbouring countries of Afghanistan. With less than a month to go before Afghanistans presidential election, the front-runners have begun to campaign in earnest. Karzai is barred from standing, having served two terms since the fall of the Taliban. A string of tirades against NATO means his departure will come as a relief to diplomats in Kabul. He has refused to sign a deal to allow American forces to stay beyond 2014 and last month provoked fury among families of British soldiers by saying troops presence in Helmand had made the country worse. Abdullah, who trained as an ophthalmologist, has said he will sign the deal. He was speaking in the grand governors palace in Jalalabad, not far from the border with Pakistan. This is Pashtun country, far from his Tajik power base in the north, but an area where he must make inroads if he is to win power. Before Abdullahs address, there was a string of introductions from local political officials, many of whom - like him - built their reputations as mujahedeen fighting the Soviet occupation. Then Abdullah appeared, his traditional pokol hat quickly replaced by a giant turban. At times the rally resembled The Price is Right, with the crowd shouting out their pet projects - schools, dams, power plants, airports, hospitals - only for Abdullah to cheer his support. I will fix it, he said, reaching theatrically for a piece of paper when one heckler complained about a local road. Let me write it down. With little ideologically to separate the main candidates in the election, the outcome is most likely to depend on complex political horse-trading. Abdullahs team now fears it will face its sternest challenge from Zalmai Rassoul, who appears to have the won the private backing of the presidents patronage networks. Last week, Karzais elder brother announced that he was withdrawing from the race in favour of the former finance minister. leaderpost/touch/story.html?id=9598773
Posted on: Wed, 12 Mar 2014 07:43:43 +0000