KABUL, 19 September 2004 — Taleban militants will step up attacks to disrupt Afghanistan’s first democratic presidential elections, a senior official warned yesterday following an assassination attempt on President Hamid Karzai.
“In the lead-up to the elections sabotage activities by those who are against peace would be increased,” Interior Minister Ali Ahmad Jalali told reporters. “As we get closer to the elections, we believe these activities and attacks will continue — it is quite possible that more attacks will be carried out,” he added.
The Taleban and their allies including Osama Bin Laden’s Al-Qaeda terror network have vowed to derail Afghanistan’s first elections due on Oct. 9 and pledged to attack all 18 presidential candidates.
Jalali said his ministry had received tips-off that Taleban militias and Al-Qaeda-led insurgents were preparing for attacks and had set bases along the porous Afghan-Pakistani border. “Based on the reports that we have got, it shows they plan to increase their terrorist activities. We have got accurate reports that they have set some centers along the border,” Jalali said.
On Thursday Taleban militants fired a rocket at a helicopter carrying Karzai forcing him to abort his first election campaign trip outside Kabul in southeastern Paktia province. Three men have been arrested over the attack, he said. “Two of them have already admitted that they were actually tasked to launch the rocket attack,” he said.
Meanwhile, Karzai said yesterday that foreign troops would remain until the country’s own fledgling forces can take the charge of stability.
“Even now we have only managed to keep them here with thousands of pleadings and lamentations,” Karzai told an election rally in the capital. “They will go when we have a powerful army,” he added.
Asked during yesterday’s rally how long foreign troops would remain in Afghanistan, Karzai said they were here only temporarily, but would remain as long as necessary. Karzai faces 17 opponents in next month’s election.
