Barno says US must stay the course
* Germany planning new military camp ahead of Afghan elections
KABUL: The Taliban and their Al Qaeda allies were stepping up plans to disrupt Afghanistan’s first direct presidential election on Oct 9, the head of the US-led coalition said on Saturday.
“We have seen indications that they have no other option,” Lieutenant-General David Barno told a news conference in Kabul. “For all terrorists in the region disrupting the election is part of their agenda.” Barno said an insurgency that has seen over 1,000 deaths since August last year was being waged by a “tiny minority”, and that the rest of the world owed it to Afghanistan to stand by them beyond the election period.
“Our challenge is to rise up to the level of resolve shown daily here by our hosts, the people of Afghanistan, he said. “We must remain resolute, we must stay the course.” More than 17,000 US and allied troops are fighting an insurgency waged by the Taliban, overthrown in 2001 for supporting Osama bin Laden and his Al Qaeda network, architects of the Sept. 11 attacks on the United States. Interim Afghan President Hamid Karzai is expected to defeat 17 opponents standing against him in the election.
Meanwhile, a German defence ministry spokesman said on Saturday that the German army is planning to build a new military camp south of Kabul to boost security ahead of Afghanistan’s general elections set for early 2005. The spokesman said a German army patrol would travel to the town of Surobi, 60 kilometres south of the capital of Kabul Saturday to discuss the parameters of the new camp with local authorities.
The temporary garrison is set to be up and running by January 2005. German Defence Minister Peter Struck, who is to travel to Afghanistan on Sunday to pay a visit to German troops, said Friday the security situation in the country remained “unstable” two weeks ahead of the country’s October 9 presidential election. With its 1,480 soldiers, Germany provides the largest number of troops within the NATO-run, 7,000 member International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) in Afghanistan.
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