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| Afghanistan |
| Karzai chooses Fahim as running mate |
| 2009-05-06 |
| President Hamid Karzai chose a powerful warlord accused of rights abuses as one of his vice presidential running mates hours before leaving for meetings in Washington with President Barack Obama and Pakistan's president. The selection Monday of Mohammad Qasim Fahim, a top commander in the Jamiat-e-Islami during Afghanistan's 1990s civil war, drew immediate criticism from human rights groups. A 2005 Human Rights Watch report, "Blood-Stained Hands," found "credible and consistent evidence of widespread and systematic human rights abuses and violations of international humanitarian law" were committed by Jamiat commanders, including Fahim. Karzai was "insulting the country" with the choice, the New York-based group said Monday. Fahim served as Karzai's first vice president during the country's interim government put in place after the ouster of the Taliban in the 2001 US-led invasion. |
| Posted by:Fred |