hamid karzai

The emerging consensus in Afghanistan is that military action alone will not win the war against the Taliban and a political solution will be necessary.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has reached out to some Taliban leaders. But analysts say the Taliban and the U.S. are not ready for full-scale negotiations — yet.

When the main challenger to Afghan President Hamid Karzai dropped out of a planned runoff, it did more than end two months of election disputes.

According to Sen. John Kerry, it also gives Karzai a chance to prove his legitimacy — and to become a stronger ally to America.

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Incumbent President Hamid Karzai is ahead in the slow tally of ballots cast in Afghanistan's Aug. 20 polls. But hundreds of formal complaints of fraud — from ballot-box stuffing to voter intimidation — threaten the credibility of the process.

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Preliminary returns from last week's Afghan presidential election indicate there will have to be a runoff between the two leading contenders.

The country's election commission says President Hamid Karzai has a slight lead over his main challenger former Foreign Minister Abdullah Abdullah.

About 10 percent of the vote has been counted so far.

Preliminary results in Afghanistan's presidential election aren't expected until Saturday. Still, campaign teams for President Hamid Karzai and challenger Abdullah Abdullah insist their candidate won.

And though intimidation by the Taliban kept turnout low, almost all the country's polling places stayed open Thursday.

Which allowed the candidates, and the U.S., to pronounce the election a qualified success.

Later this month in Afghanistan, voters will cast ballots in the presidential election. Incumbent Hamid Karzai has been campaigning to keep his job.

Karzai recently traveled to a remote village, where he held a rally. Karzai struck a deal with an influential religious leader there that virtually assures he will carry the entire area.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai has invited two Afghan climbers to celebrate their historic feat. The two men reached the country's highest mountain, something no Afghan has ever done.

It took them four days to conquer Mount Noshaq braving glaciers, wind and thin air.

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In Afghanistan, the election campaign kicks off this week for next month's presidential elections. There are dozens of candidates on the ballot, trying to unseat President Hamid Karzai.

The campaign gets underway amid concerns over voter apathy and serious security problems in many parts of the country.

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