Unable to stop next Saturday's Afghan presidential election, the Taleban and their allies are ramping up violence, even killing children, to create a climate of fear and discredit the poll.For many Afghans, the renewed spike in violence is a reminder of the fear that beset voters the last time they were asked to head to the polls.
In the Mahala Najat district of Kandahar city — the former capital of the Taleban regime when they ruled Afghanistan from 1996 until the US-led invasion in 2001 — shopkeeper Ahmad Gul sits under a tired orange awning. He recalls how during the last election day on August 20 2009 a group of Taleban fired four rockets just metres from his shop at the provincial governor's residence, frightening the local population and contributing to a record low voter turnout for Kandahar — just five per cent.