Morning Brief: Karzai to accept runoff

Tue, 10/20/2009 - 7:47am

Top story: Afghan President Hamid Karzai is expected to announce today that he will concede to holding a runoff in Afghanistan's disputed election. Karzai's government had initially rejected the findings of an internationally-backed panel that stripped him of nearly a third of his votes due to fraud, leaving him below the 50 percent mark required for outright victory. Second-place finisher Abdullah Abdullah will challenge Karzai in the runoff. 

Karzai's reversal came after a round of intense lobbying from his international allies. Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chair John Kerry and Amb. Karl Eikenberry met with Karzai on Monday and British Prime Minister Gordon Brown reportedly put in a phone call as well. 

With winter approaching, it will be difficult to hold an election soon and a government may not be in place until spring, further complicating the U.S. administration's decision on troop levels. 

Religion: The Pope has created a new church structure for disaffected Anglicans who wish to join the Catholic Church. 

Asia

  • Suicide bombers attacked a university in Islamabad as Pakistan's military offensive in South Waziristan continued. 
  • Eight South Asian nations agreed not to be part of any climate agreement that includes binding emissions cuts. 
  • Kyrgyzstan's government resigned over proposed reforms by President Kurmanbek Bakiyev.

Middle East

  • Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki is meeting with Barack Obama at the White House today. 
  • Iran is threatening to pull out of international nuclear talks if France is not excluded from plans to enrich its uranium.
  • Eight Kurdish rebels crossed over the border from Iraq to give themselves up to Turkish authorities. 

Europe

  • Russian President Dmitry Medvedev visited Serbia, bringing a $1 billion loan.
  • France arrested a senior Eta political leader. 
  • A Swiss court denied bail to jailed director Roman Polanski. 

Africa

Americas

  • A deadline for resolving Honduras's political standoff passed on Monday with no agreement on reinstating ousted President Manuel Zelaya.
  • The Brazilian government has allocated $60 million for Rio De Janeiro to increase security.  
  • Uruguay's government ruled out amnesty for those accused of human rights violations during the country's dictatorship. 
Paula Bronstein/Getty Image
Joshua Keating | Permalink | | Comments? Login or register
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