"It's a Real Mess": Afghan Rivals Both Claim Presidency as Ongoing Attacks Could Derail Peace Deal
by mail@democracynow.org (Democracy Now!) from Democracy Now! on (#50EN3)
Since last month's U.S.-Taliban peace plan, there have been nearly 80 attacks in Afghanistan. The violence could derail the deal that calls for U.S. troops to withdraw over the next 14 months. This comes as Afghan President Ashraf Ghani and top political leader Abdullah Abdullah both claimed that they won the presidential election at dual inauguration ceremonies today in Kabul, and members of the Taliban and the Afghan government were set to start direct negotiations on Tuesday. We speak with Washington Post reporter Craig Whitlock, who recently won the George Polk Award for Military Reporting for his in-depth investigation called "The Afghanistan Papers: A Secret History of the War."