Forty-eight hours before the country holds its heavily anticipated presidential elections,Afghanistan was again blighted by violence today. Two rockets targeted Kabul in the early hours of Tuesday morning, one striking the presidential palace, home to incumbent President Hamid Karzai, while the second hit the capital's police headquarters. No casualties were reported. Later in the morning seven people were killed and fifty-two wounded as a car filled with explosives drove into a British military food convoy driving through the city. In the south of the country meanwhile, a suicide attack tookplace at a police checkpoint, killing five, whilst a provincial council candidate was shot dead in the north.
The ToD verdict: The upsurge in attacks across Afghanistan is a predictable attempt by the Taliban, who have vowed to use violence against both government and western forces and civilians, to disrupt and discredit the polls. In the same week as US President Barack Obama called the conflict in Afghanistan "a war worth fighting", this sustained increase in violence seems to be having a desired secondary effect on voters in some NATO member countries. Recent surveys suggest that support for military operations in Afghanistan by the US and British public has fallen due to its increasing human and financial cost.
A second blow was dealt to Afghans' confidence in the elections today as an investigation uncovered widespread fraud and corruption in the run-up to the polls. The investigation, conducted by the BBC, found that thousands of voting cards could be easily bought, and that some influential tribal leaders were being paid substantial sums to deliver large blocks of votes. Afghanistan is obviously in the transitional stagesof democracy and initial elections are likely to be flawed, a point conceded by western officials. However, the findings will do little to win over local confidence in the government or encourage voter turnout. Interviews with Afghans suggest that it is the weakness and corruption of the current government that is fuelling support for the Taliban, which has set up "honest" taxation and dispute settlement structures in provinces under its control.
World Food Programme attacked in Somalia
Militants suspected of belonging to al-Shabab, a Somali based militant group, attacked a UN World Food Programme compound in the southern town of Wajid during the early hours of Monday morning. UN security guards repelled the assault, killing three of the attackers. UN officials suspect that the militants aimed to kidnap aid staff. The attack comes days after militants killed eight people in mortar attacks on Mogadishu's airport and presidential palace.
Meanwhile in north-eastern Somalia, four WFP staff were abducted in transit from the Wajid base to a local airfield but were released unharmed after intervention by local authorities. Nine other UN staff inthe Wajid area of Somalia have been evacuated to neighbouring Kenya.
Iran ready to discuss its nuclear programme "without preconditions"
Iran's envoy to the International Atomic Energy Agency, Ali Asghar Soltanieh, stated thatTehran was ready to engage with the West in talks concerning its nuclear programme but emphasised that discussions needed to be based on mutual respect and without preconditions.
The statement, aired today on Iranian state television, is seen as a response to the offer of multilateral talks with the United States, China, Russia, France, Germany and Britain. US President Barack Obama set a September deadline for Iran to agree to the six party talks, in which trade benefits would be proffered in return for Iran halting its nuclear enrichment programme, before tougher sanctions against the country were sought. Iran's counter offer could be seen as a positive development in Tehran's troubled relationship with the West, particularly following a period of heightened antagonism during the disputed Iranian elections. However,the fact that Iran has withheld its response until now is seen by some as"buying time for enrichment expansion."
Scores killed in clashes in South Sudan
At least 185 people were killed in clashes between two rival ethnic groups in South Sudan on Sunday. The victims, mostly women and children, are the latest fatalities in an ongoing war between the Lou Nuer and Murle ethnic groups which has already left over 700 dead and displaced 50,000 this year. The conflict has many underlying causes, although Salva Kiir, the president of the autonomous southern government, believes that this recent violence was instigated by groups opposed to the 2011 referendum on independence from North Sudan.
Two senior Taliban representatives captured in Pakistan
One of the most high profile Taliban officials has been captured in an area close to the border with Afghanistan. Maulvi Omar, who is a known spokesman for the Tehrik-e-Taliban of Pakistan, was thought to be en-route to a meeting with senior Taliban commanders when, with the help of local militias in the Mohmand tribal region, he was captured by Pakistani security forces. Another senior Taliban figure, Qari Saifullah, who is linked to several attacks in Pakistan, was also arrested when seeking medical help in Islamabad. Both men were close allies of Baitullah Mehsud, who was the head of the Taliban in Pakistan until he was killed in a US drone strike in which Saifullah was injured.
It is hoped that by removing its key leaders the Taliban will be plunged into disarray. However,some doubt the significance of Maulvi Omar's capture, believing his importance in the organisation has been diminished due to army advances in his north-west stronghold in recent months.
Elsewhere in Pakistan,a car bomb killed six people when it exploded in a petrol station near Peshawar in the North-West Frontier Province on Monday. No group has claimed responsibility, although the Taliban have carried out several revenge attacks for Pakistan's spring military offensives in the region.
US proposes joint border patrols in northern Iraq to combat al-Qaeda influence
The Iraqi prime minister, Nuri al-Maliki, met with US military commanders on Monday to discuss the possibility of deploying a joint security force to patrol the semi-autonomous Kurdish region in northern Iraq.
The proposals respond to increasing violence in the region, believed to be caused by growing tensions between Kurds and Arabs over the status of the oil-wealthy city of Kirkuk. The Kurdish population are keen to see the city incorporated into their semi-autonomous region, while the majority of the city's Arab and Turkmen population wish to remain under the control of Baghdad. The US military fears al-Qaeda is exploiting this divide in an attempt to gain control of the area.
The proposals envisage the creation of a joint unit consisting of Iraqi and the Kurdistan Regional Government's security forces, with additional US troops building "confidence in the forces so they're comfortable working together" before withdrawing form the unit.
