Min-Fadhli-Rabii
Junior Member
:salam2:
Karzai urges Afghan war timeline
Mr Karzai (R) with the UN team that is assessing the Afghan situation
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called for a timetable for ending the war against the Taleban in his country.
Mr Karzai made the call in a speech to a visiting UN Security Council team.
He said if Afghans had "no light at the end of the tunnel" they had the right to pursue other options, such as peace negotiations with the Taleban.
Mr Karzai also demanded an end to arrests of Afghans "in their homes, in the roads" by international forces, saying it was the job of Afghan police.
The US and its allies ousted the Taleban regime in 2001 and there are now about 70,000 mainly Western troops pursuing a "war on terror".
'Sanctuaries'
Mr Karzai said Afghans could be asking why a "little force like the Taleban can continue to exist, can continue to flourish, can continue to launch attacks".
The president said after seven years Afghans were asking why "with the entire international community behind them, still we are not able to defeat the Taleban".
The arrest of Afghans in their homes, in the roads must stop by the international forces
President Hamid Karzai
Mr Karzai said there were two options.
First would be to set a timeline, saying that what had not been achieved in the past seven years would be achieved in the next "four years, five years or another seven years".
But he added: "If we cannot give a light at the end of the tunnel to the Afghan people, [do] the Afghan people have a right to ask for negotiation for peace? [Do] the Afghan people have a right to seek other avenues?"
Mr Karzai said he would continue to fight al-Qaeda and Taleban members "who are ideologically against the rest of the world".
However, he said Taleban members who were "part of the Afghan community" could be brought back to serve Afghanistan.
The BBC's Daud Qarizadah in Kabul says Mr Karzai's strong comments show he is extremely worried about the dissatisfaction and frustration among Afghans in the south and east where the insurgency is high.
The call for the timeline is an attempt to win support back in those regions ahead of elections next year, our correspondent says.
Mr Karzai also demanded an end to "forceful entry" by coalition forces into Afghan homes.
"The arrest of Afghans in their homes, in the roads must stop by the international forces... This is the job of the Afghan judicial system and the Afghan police," he said.
The war against the militants had to be fought against their "sanctuaries" in Pakistan, he added.
Our correspondent says Mr Karzai is clearly trying to distance himself from the foreign forces to regain lost popularity.
The UN delegation is on a fact-finding mission and is discussing the use of $20bn pledged at a donors' conference this year.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7748610.stm
Karzai urges Afghan war timeline
Mr Karzai (R) with the UN team that is assessing the Afghan situation
Afghan President Hamid Karzai has called for a timetable for ending the war against the Taleban in his country.
Mr Karzai made the call in a speech to a visiting UN Security Council team.
He said if Afghans had "no light at the end of the tunnel" they had the right to pursue other options, such as peace negotiations with the Taleban.
Mr Karzai also demanded an end to arrests of Afghans "in their homes, in the roads" by international forces, saying it was the job of Afghan police.
The US and its allies ousted the Taleban regime in 2001 and there are now about 70,000 mainly Western troops pursuing a "war on terror".
'Sanctuaries'
Mr Karzai said Afghans could be asking why a "little force like the Taleban can continue to exist, can continue to flourish, can continue to launch attacks".
The president said after seven years Afghans were asking why "with the entire international community behind them, still we are not able to defeat the Taleban".
The arrest of Afghans in their homes, in the roads must stop by the international forces
President Hamid Karzai
Mr Karzai said there were two options.
First would be to set a timeline, saying that what had not been achieved in the past seven years would be achieved in the next "four years, five years or another seven years".
But he added: "If we cannot give a light at the end of the tunnel to the Afghan people, [do] the Afghan people have a right to ask for negotiation for peace? [Do] the Afghan people have a right to seek other avenues?"
Mr Karzai said he would continue to fight al-Qaeda and Taleban members "who are ideologically against the rest of the world".
However, he said Taleban members who were "part of the Afghan community" could be brought back to serve Afghanistan.
The BBC's Daud Qarizadah in Kabul says Mr Karzai's strong comments show he is extremely worried about the dissatisfaction and frustration among Afghans in the south and east where the insurgency is high.
The call for the timeline is an attempt to win support back in those regions ahead of elections next year, our correspondent says.
Mr Karzai also demanded an end to "forceful entry" by coalition forces into Afghan homes.
"The arrest of Afghans in their homes, in the roads must stop by the international forces... This is the job of the Afghan judicial system and the Afghan police," he said.
The war against the militants had to be fought against their "sanctuaries" in Pakistan, he added.
Our correspondent says Mr Karzai is clearly trying to distance himself from the foreign forces to regain lost popularity.
The UN delegation is on a fact-finding mission and is discussing the use of $20bn pledged at a donors' conference this year.
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/south_asia/7748610.stm
